Trump Signs Sweeping New Sanctions Law Targeting Russia
The new law targets Russia’s energy and defense sectors and gives President Donald Trump authority to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on major buyers of Russian oil and gas.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - US President Donald Trump has signed into law a sweeping sanctions package targeting Russia, expanding Washington’s economic pressure on Moscow over its war in Ukraine and giving the president broad new authority to impose tariffs on countries that continue buying Russian energy.
Trump signed the legislation on Friday, shortly after it cleared Congress. The White House said the law authorizes and expands statutory sanctions, tariffs and prohibitions targeting Russia while also extending existing sanctions on Iran.
The legislation targets Russia’s energy and defense sectors, as well as President Vladimir Putin and other senior officials. It also targets Moscow’s so-called shadow fleet of tankers used to circumvent existing sanctions.
The law gives Trump authority to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on major buyers of Russian oil and gas, potentially affecting countries such as China and India.
The measure does not automatically impose those tariffs. Instead, it provides the president with the authority to apply them to major purchasers of Russian energy.
The legislation is intended to put additional pressure on Russia’s sources of energy revenue, which Washington says help finance Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
It also allows sanctions against companies and foreign actors that support Russia’s military or help it evade existing US restrictions, while extending sanctions involving Iran.
The Republican-led House of Representatives passed the legislation by a 262-159 vote on Wednesday.
The Senate had already approved the measure before it was sent to Trump for his signature. Reuters reported that the legislation is formally titled the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, honoring the late Republican senator who had strongly supported tougher measures against Moscow.
The legislation received bipartisan support, although its expanded tariff powers generated opposition among some Democrats.
Some Democrats who broadly support Ukraine expressed concerns about giving Trump wider authority over trade and tariffs. The debate reflected divisions over how far the administration should be able to use trade measures as part of its foreign-policy strategy.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky previously described the legislation’s passage as symbolic and thanked US lawmakers for their support.
India, meanwhile, said Thursday that it would continue buying oil through what it described as “diversified sourcing.”
Trump’s signing of the legislation also comes about a week before his scheduled meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington, potentially placing the new tariff authority over Russian energy buyers against the backdrop of upcoming US-China talks.
The new law expands Washington’s statutory sanctions framework against Russia and provides the Trump administration with additional tools to pressure Moscow and countries continuing to purchase Russian energy.