US Senate clears way for new economic blow against Russia
The US Senate has approved a new sanctions bill aimed at curbing Russia's energy export revenues. The bill includes restrictions on Russia's leadership, financial sector and "shadow fleet", and also gives the US president the authority to impose high tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil and gas.
US Senate approves new economic sanctions against Russia.
On August 7, the US Senate approved a new package of sanctions against Russia with 86 senators in favor and 11 against. Now the bill will be sent to the House of Representatives for consideration. However, due to the summer recess of the parliament, the vote on the document will not be held before the beginning of September.
The bill is aimed at reducing Russia's revenues from energy exports. According to the document, sanctions are imposed on Russian President Vladimir Putin, senior officials, oligarchs, banks, financial institutions, as well as the "shadow fleet" used to circumvent restrictions on oil exports.
The bill also gives US President Donald Trump the right to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on goods imported from countries that are major buyers of Russian oil and gas.
However, the document also provides for exceptions for some countries. In particular, these restrictions will not apply to countries that import less than 15 percent of their natural gas from Russia and are taking measures to reduce this dependence.
The bill is named after US Senator Lindsey Graham, who died on July 11. He actively promoted this initiative in Congress for more than a year.
Supporters of the document argue that depriving Russia of energy revenues is an important step to limit Moscow's ability to finance its war in Ukraine. The Russian Embassy in the United States criticized the bill, calling it a decision that runs counter to the interests of the current US administration.