The Senate on Friday passed a major Russia sanctions bill, named for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, who played a key role in the painstaking negotiations over the legislation that lasted over a year.
The bill ultimately sailed through the Senate on bipartisan vote, 86 to 11. It would next need a vote in the House, which is currently on recess until September.
The package would place mandatory sanctions on top figures in the Russian government, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as Russian oligarchs, state-owned enterprises and foreign companies supporting Russia’s defense industrial base.
In addition, it would impose up to a 100% tariff on the top five countries, including China and India, that purchase Russian crude oil and natural gas, with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer determining the final tariff level. It allows an exemption for countries that import less than 15% of Russia’s total natural gas exports and are working to significantly lower their use of Russian natural gas.
The day before he died, Graham announced – while standing in front of tanks in the streets of Kyiv, Ukraine – that the administration and the bill’s key Senate backers had finally reached a deal on the package. In the days after he passed, his colleagues rallied for passage of the bill, casting it as a “fitting legacy” for the senator-statesman.
