A bill imposing sanctions on Russia, which passed the US Senate with an overwhelming majority last month, is set for a vote in the US House of Representatives next week, according to a source familiar with legislative plans. The bill, authored by the late South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, would grant President Donald Trump the authority to impose 100% tariffs on goods from the five largest purchasers of Russian oil and natural gas, as well as from five countries found to be helping Russia evade energy sanctions.
China, India, and Turkey are the largest buyers of Russian petroleum products. The House vote will be held under a procedure requiring only a simple majority for the bill to pass.
Business opposition and House plans
The bill has faced growing resistance in the US House of Representatives due to concerns that it would expand Donald Trump‘s tariff powers and drive up oil prices. Despite this, House leadership decided to move forward with the legislation, which has bipartisan support and backing from the White House, following the lawmakers’ return to Washington from this week’s Republican Party conference.
Retail representatives and the influential US Chamber of Commerce have raised concerns that the bill would provide the Trump administration with new legal grounds to broadly apply tariffs. Business organizations oppose the initiative.
In a draft letter to House leadership reviewed by Bloomberg, the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups urged Congress to remove the tariff-imposing provisions from the bill. Instead, they suggest focusing on “targeted sanctions, enhanced enforcement against sanctions evasion, and coordinated diplomacy with countries that purchase Russian energy.”
Source: Bloomberg
