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Sanctioning Russia Act

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Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025
Great Seal of the United States
Long titleA bill to impose sanctions and other measures with respect to the Russian Federation if the Government of the Russian Federation refuses to negotiate a peace agreement with Ukraine, violates any such agreement, or initiates another military invasion of Ukraine, and for other purposes.
Enacted bythe 119th United States Congress
Legislative history

The Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 (S.1241) is a proposed bipartisan bill introduced in the 119th U.S. Congress that gives the US president the option to impose extensive new sanctions on Russia and countries that purchase Russian energy and other critical exports,[1] in response to the continuing Russian invasion of Ukraine and Russia's refusal to engage in peace negotiations.[2][3]

Its proposed measures include a 500% tariff on imports from nations buying Russian oil, natural gas, petroleum products, or uranium, along with expanded restrictions on Russian sovereign debt and financial transactions involving sanctioned entities.[4][5]

The legislation was introduced in the Senate by Lindsey Graham (R‑SC) and co-sponsored by a bipartisan supermajority of at least 81 senators. In the House of Representatives, a companion bill (H.R. 2548) was introduced by Brian Fitzpatrick (R‑PA 1st) with 83 cosponsors.[6]

Background

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Since the beginning of 2025, peace efforts led by President Donald Trump to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian war have repeatedly failed to achieve a peace treaty.[7][8] Trump's approach has been characterized as lenient toward Russia, with most of the pressure falling on Ukraine thus creating little incentive for President Vladimir Putin to compromise.[9][10] As Trump conceded to more of Moscow's demands, Putin refused to compromise and his conditions for ending the war expanded.[11][12][13]

This negotiation strategy has been widely criticized by members of Congress, particularly Democrats and a number of Republicans.[14][15][16] In response to continued Russian aggression, including a deadly drone attack on Kyiv in May 2025, the Sanctioning Russia Act was introduced as a bipartisan effort to pressure Putin into serious and conclusive peace negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine. China and India are the major consumers of Russian energy.[17] In June 2025, Graham said in a television interview: "I’ve got 84 co-sponsors for a Russian sanctions bill that is an economic bunker buster against China, India, and Russia for Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine."[18]

Donald Trump has shown some support for the bill in his reposting of a Washington Post article on Truth Social.[19][20] Majority Leader John Thune said that senators "stand ready to provide President Trump with any tools he needs to get Russia to finally come to the table in a real way."[17]

Legislative history

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On April 1, 2025, Senator Lindsey Graham (R‑SC) introduced the Sanctioning Russia Act in the Senate. The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.[21] The legislation has been co-sponsored by 82 senators, crossing the two-thirds threshold required to override a presidential veto. The scale of bipartisan support it has attracted is explained with the quick traction it gained given the growing frustration in Washington over Russia's actions related to the peace process.[22][23]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Rep. Fitzpatrick, Brian K. [R-PA-1 (April 1, 2025). "H.R.2548 - 119th Congress (2025-2026): Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025". www.congress.gov. Retrieved July 11, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Dennis, Steven (May 1, 2025). "Graham Says He Has Broad Senate Support for New Russia Sanctions". Bloomberg.
  3. ^ "'Bone-Crushing' Sanctions: Graham Pushes Bill With 500% Tariff on Russian Oil Buyers if Putin Shuns Peace Talks". Kyiv Post. May 1, 2025.
  4. ^ Fields, Ashleigh (April 1, 2025). "Bipartisan senators introduce primary, secondary Russia sanctions". The Hill. Archived from the original on April 29, 2025. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  5. ^ "'Bone-chilling to Putin': Senators push tough new Russia sanctions". MSNBC.com. Retrieved May 5, 2025.
  6. ^ "Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 (H.R. 2548)". GovTrack.us. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  7. ^ Korshak, Stefan. "Failed Peace: The Trump Bid to End the Russia-Ukraine War Fast Ends in Shambles". www.kyivpost.com. Archived from the original on May 2, 2025. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  8. ^ Zeleny, Kevin Liptak, Alayna Treene, Jeff (April 24, 2025). "A frustrated Trump privately concedes ending the Ukraine war has been harder than he thought". CNN. Retrieved May 4, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ Sanger, David E.; Shear, Michael D.; Landler, Mark (April 23, 2025). "Trump Pressures Ukraine to Accept a Peace Plan That Sharply Favors Russia". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  10. ^ Swan, Jonathan (April 24, 2025). "Trump Urges Russia to 'STOP!' After Deadly Attack on Ukraine's Capital". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  11. ^ Baker, Peter (April 26, 2025). "How Trump Plays Into Putin's Hands, From Ukraine to Slashing U.S. Institutions". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  12. ^ "'Crimea will stay with Russia,' Trump tells Time". POLITICO. April 25, 2025. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  13. ^ "A US-led effort to end the war in Ukraine looks favorable to Russia, but mixed signals emerge". AP News. May 2, 2025. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  14. ^ Ewing, Giselle Ruhiyyih (March 1, 2025). "Murkowski rebukes Trump over Ukraine: 'Walking away from our allies'". POLITICO. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  15. ^ "Trump faces pushback in Washington over Ukraine aid freeze". www.bbc.com. March 4, 2025. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  16. ^ Mackey, Robert; Stein, Chris; Salam, Erum; Ambrose, Tom (March 6, 2025). "Senate Democrats condemn Russia over Ukraine war and dare Republicans to object – as it happened". the Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  17. ^ a b "US Senate may work on Russia sanctions bill this month". Reuters. June 2, 2025.
  18. ^ "Trump backs new Russia sanctions bill that could place 500% tariff on India". Mint. July 10, 2025.
  19. ^ "Truth Social". Truth Social. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  20. ^ Thiessen, Marc A.; Lasswell, Mark; Lamott, Anne; Morell, Clare (May 29, 2025). "Opinion | Congress can give Trump the leverage to coerce Putin". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  21. ^ "Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 (S. 1241)". GovTrack.us. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  22. ^ "Bipartisan group of US senators readies new sanctions to hit Russia". Stars and Stripes. Retrieved May 4, 2025.
  23. ^ S.A, Telewizja Polska. "US senators push for 'bone-chilling' sanctions on Russia's oil". tvpworld.com (in Polish). Retrieved May 4, 2025.
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