Donald Trump Urges Republicans To Add Iran in Russian Sanctions Bill

Donald Trump said on Sunday that Republicans should add Iran to the Russian sanctions bill, a proposed legislation on which late US Senator Lindsey Graham was working upon.

Donald Trump said on Sunday that Republicans should add Iran to the Russian sanctions bill. Making the announcement on his Truth Social, Trump’s post referred to Sanctioning Russia Act, a legislation championed by the late US Senator Lindsey Graham which seeks legislation to impose sweeping sanctions on Russia and its supporters, replacing the earlier proposal for blanket tariffs with targeted measures aimed at the world’s largest buyers of Russian energy. The US President mentioned that Lindsey wanted to do it and it was going to happen.

Earlier today, Trump amid escalated tensions in the Middle East, said that he couldn’t care less about Iran’s decision to stop abiding by the US-Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU), reiterating that Washington’s priority remains preventing Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

Senator Lindsey Graham’s pursuit of a Russia sanctions bill has taken on renewed urgency after his death as colleagues look to pay tribute and build on the progress he made in gaining the White House’s support for the measure.

Supporters of Ukraine have been working for more than a year to pass a bill that would impose steep tariffs on goods from countries that continue to buy Russian oil, gas and other exports. They unveiled a revised measure Tuesday (earlier this week) with the goal of depriving Russia of money it uses to fund its war against Ukraine.

Some lawmakers worried the original bill was too broad and could harm the economies of some of the U.S.’s strongest allies that have also helped Ukraine. The White House wanted to ensure the president had adequate flexibility to waive sanctions when it is the national interest to do so. The revised bill attempts to address both concerns.

The final bill more narrowly applies the tariffs to the world’s top five purchasers of Russia oil or natural gas, according to a summary.

China and India are at the top of that list, sponsors said. It also dramatically reduces the tariffs from a blanket 500% to up to 100%, and it provides exceptions for countries that import less than 15% of their natural gas from Russia and are taking steps to reduce those imports.

The bill also includes sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin, senior Russian political and military leaders, and Russian financial institutions and energy projects. It would also expand U.S. sanctions to target older, reflagged oil tankers that Russia uses to circumvent existing U.S. sanctions on Russian oil and energy revenues.

With inputs from AP

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