The US Senate on Friday approved the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which significantly expands the sanctions pressure on Russian energy and gives the US president the right to introduce tariffs of up to 500% on the import of Russian goods.
86 senators voted for the document, 11 against, the New York Post reports. The bill must now pass the House of Representatives, which returns after the summer recess on August 31, after which it must be signed by the US president. Until then, new sanctions and tariffs do not take effect.
The bill became a revised version of the sanctions initiative that Congress has been discussing since 2025. The original version actually provided for 500% tariffs for almost all countries that bought Russian oil, gas and uranium. In the final version of the Senate, this mechanism was significantly narrowed.
500% — directly for Russian goods
If the law enters into force, the US president must within 30 days receive the authority to increase tariffs on all goods of Russian origin imported into the US to 500% of their value.
In the text, oil, natural gas, LNG, petroleum products, petrochemicals are listed separately products, coal and other Russian goods.
Moreover, these duties will be calculated in addition to already existing American tariffs, anti-dumping and other fees.
In practice, a 500% duty actually makes most direct Russian exports to the USA commercially senseless.
For example, for a customs value of $1 million of goods, the additional duty can theoretically reach $5 million.
However, the value of this mechanism for Russian exports is limited by the fact that direct trade between Russia and the US has already significantly decreased after the introduction of previous sanctions.
The second mechanism — the so-called secondary tariffs — may be much more sensitive to world trade.
The president will be able to set tariffs of up to 100% on all goods imported to the US from countries that are among the five largest buyers of Russian oil. or natural gas.
For a country to fall under this mechanism, it must continue new purchases of Russian raw materials 30 days after the law comes into force and at the same time be among the top 5 importers by volume over the previous 12 months.
China and India are primarily at potential risk. Reuters notes that depending on the structure of supplies, some European countries and Japan may also be included in the corresponding list. The law itself does not list specific countries in advance.
This means that the duty will not be applied to Russian oil bought by, for example, India, but potentially to all Indian exports to the US.
That is why the mechanism is a much more serious tool of pressure than the usual sanctions against Russian companies.
Conditionally: the country gets a choice — to continue large purchases of Russian energy and risk access of its goods to the American market, or to reduce imports from Russia.
Separately, the law allows for the introduction of tariffs of up to 100% against the five largest countries, which, according to the United States, contribute to the circumvention of sanctions on Russian oil.
Thus, the sanctions mechanism applies not only to buyers of Russian raw materials, but also on countries through which schemes for its resale, transportation or concealment of origin may pass.
In addition, the draft law provides for additional sanctions against the Russian "shadow fleet" - tankers and related companies used to transport Russian energy carriers to bypass Western restrictions.
The American authorities must review the list of the largest buyers and potential violators every 180 days, so the composition of the countries at risk may change along with trade flows.
The bill includes a caveat for states that import Russian natural gas.
Tariffs may not be applied if the country in question accounts for less than 15% of all Russian natural gas exports and at the same time takes significant steps to reduce dependence on Russian gas.
This rule is especially important for European states that still receive part of Russian gas, but gradually reduce its purchases.
The widespread statement about additional 100% duties on the largest buyers of Russian uranium does not correspond to the current version of the draft law. In the initial version, uranium did appear in the mechanism of 500% secondary tariffs. However, after negotiations with the White House, this mechanism was changed.
In the current document, Russian uranium is regulated separately.
The law requires the implementation of restrictions on the import of Russian uranium to the United States and provides for sanctions against the leadership, management and controlling shareholders of Rosatom and related entities.
Tariffs are only one part of the package
The law provides for mandatory sanctions against the top political and military leadership of the Russian Federation, a number of large Russian financial organizations, state-owned companies and foreign individuals who support the Russian defense industrial complex.
The official review of the draft law separately names the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, Sberbank and Gazprombank.
Sanctions also apply to major energy projects, including Yamal LNG, Arctic LNG 1, Arctic LNG 2 and Arctic LNG 3, as well as future Russian projects in the Arctic.
For American persons, a ban on new investments in the Russian Federation and Russian energy, the purchase of Russian sovereign debt, a number of financial transfers to the Russian state, as well as the export of American energy products to Russia is foreseen.
Another important feature of the law is that the president gets the opportunity to change the intensity of secondary tariffs.
The rate can range from zero to 100% depending on the behavior of a specific country and the volume of purchases of Russian energy.
If the state reduces purchases, the American trade representative will be able to reduce the tariff. If imports increase, the pressure may increase.
The president also gets the right to temporarily waive the application of certain sanctions or tariffs, if he officially confirms to Congress that such a step is in the national interests of the United States.
Thus, the new law is not an automatic trade blockade of China, India or other buyers of Russian oil, but a tool that the White House will be able to use for negotiating pressure.
The Iranian part of the bill is slightly different. character.
Added to the package is a five-year extension of existing US sanctions powers against Iran's energy and arms sectors, which were supposed to expire at the end of 2026.
Therefore, the claim that Russia and Iran will receive exactly the same regime of "500% sanctions" is incorrect.
The main new tariff mechanism is aimed specifically at Russia and its largest buyers. of Russian energy resources, while the Iranian part primarily retains the already existing sanctions powers of the US.
Why the new mechanism is considered particularly tough
The key idea of the law is to influence not only the Russian economy directly, but also the buyers of Russian raw materials.
After 2022, Russia redirected a significant part of oil exports from Europe to Asia. Therefore, restricting only the American or European market does not stop the flow of oil revenues to the Russian budget.
The new mechanism tries to change this situation through access to the American market.
For large exporters such as China and India, a potential tariff of up to 100% on goods supplied to the US may have a much greater economic weight than the benefit of buying Russian oil at a discount.
That is why the authors the bill is expected to put the largest buyers in front of an economic choice between trade with Russia and maintaining full access to the US market.
At the same time, the consequences of such a mechanism can be significant for the American economy itself. Reuters reported that some Democrats and Republicans fear rising import costs, related trade measures, and excessive expansion of the president's tariff powers.
