As early as April 2025, Republican Senator Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal jointly drafted and introduced a related bill in Congress, which garnered support from over 80 senators. The most notable provision in the bill authorizes the U.S. President to impose a 500% tariff on all goods from countries that continue to purchase Russian oil, petroleum products, or uranium.
This constitutes a secondary sanction, not directly targeting Russia but rather aiming at its trading partners. Its intent is to cut off Russia's primary sources of revenue, apply economic pressure on Russia, and prevent other nations from undermining U.S. sanctions.
On January 7, following a meeting with Trump at the White House, Graham announced: "After a very productive meeting today with President Trump on various issues, he has approved the bipartisan Russia sanctions bill that Senator Blumenthal and I have been working on for months."
He stated that the bill aims to compel Russia to end the war in Ukraine through economic pressure, providing Trump with a powerful tool to isolate Russia and punish countries that continue trading with Moscow.
In a statement, Graham noted: "The bill will give President Trump significant leverage to urge China, India, Brazil, and other countries to stop purchasing low-priced Russian oil - the very oil that funds Putin's military operations against Ukraine."
