WASHINGTON -- The US Senate on August 7 overwhelmingly approved legislation aimed at tightening economic pressure on Russia over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, advancing a measure that could give President Donald Trump authority to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on major buyers of Russian oil and gas.The Senate voted 86 to 11 to pass the “Lindsey ⁠O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026,” which would impose sanctions ‌on Russian officials and authorize steep tariffs on China, India, and other countries to reduce their dependence on Russian energy.The long-delayed measure was named in honor of Graham, the late Republican senator from South Carolina, who had championed tougher measures against Moscow for years. The Senate vote came after months of negotiations over how aggressively to target Moscow's war economy.

The bill targets Russia's financial sector, political leadership, oligarchs, and energy revenues. It also includes expanded sanctions on Iran, including its weapons and energy industries.A central provision of the bill would allow the president to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on goods from countries that continue buying large amounts of Russian oil and gas.The measure now goes to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, where its tariff provisions are likely to face scrutiny from Democrats and some Republicans.The Senate's vote came just weeks after Graham's unexpected death at the age of 71 and after lawmakers reached a bipartisan agreement on July 28 to revive the legislation.'Unmistakable Message' To MoscowSenate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, said the legislation would demonstrate that Washington will continue to support Ukraine and not be deterred by Russian pressure."Thugs like Putin don't care about what we say, only about what we do," Schumer said on the Senate floor, warning that Russian President Vladimir Putin was testing Western resolve and citing intelligence reports of potential Russian threats to NATO. "If we want to stop the bloodshed Russia unleashed on Ukraine, we have to make it clear to Putin that he's fighting a losing battle.”