Trump signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which authorizes tariffs of up to 100% on countries that keep buying Russian oil and gas and adds sanctions on Putin, senior Russian officials, banks and Russia's shadow tanker fleet. The New York Times reported that Russia warned the new law would harm Trump's peace efforts, while Trump retains broad waiver power over its provisions.

The law threatens major tariffs on China and India over their Russian oil purchases, which could ripple through global energy markets and trade relations if enforced. But Trump's wide waiver power means the sanctions' real world bite depends entirely on how he chooses to use that discretion, and Russia's warning suggests Moscow sees the law as a potential complication for the peace process Trump has been pursuing.

Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal first introduced Russia sanctions legislation in April 2025 and spent over a year building bipartisan and White House support. Graham died in July 2026 shortly after a trip to Kyiv, and the renamed bill passed the Senate 86-11 in August 2026 before the House added its own amendments and passed it with mixed bipartisan support. The bill moves alongside a long running, still unresolved U.S. effort to broker a Ukraine peace deal that began with a February 2025 Trump-Putin phone call and has produced a 28-point framework and proposed security guarantees, but no final settlement.

1. April 2025Graham and Blumenthal introduce Russia sanctions bill. Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal introduce sanctions legislation targeting buyers of Russian oil, later gaining over 80 Senate cosponsors. Source
2. July 11, 2026Senator Lindsey Graham dies. Graham dies of an aortic dissection hours after returning from a trip to Ukraine, shortly after securing White House backing for the sanctions bill. Source
3. August 7, 2026Senate passes renamed sanctions bill. The Senate passes the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 by a wide bipartisan margin, sending it to the House. Source
4. 2026House passes amended bill. The House adds its own list of ten potential tariff targets, including India, China, Turkey and the UAE, and passes the bill with mixed bipartisan support. Source
5. 2026Trump signs the bill into law. President Trump signs the sanctions bill at the White House, gaining broad tariff authority over buyers of Russian oil and gas while retaining wide waiver powers. Source

Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), 2017. Like the 2026 law, CAATSA was a Congress driven Russia sanctions statute passed with large bipartisan majorities that Trump signed while publicly limiting how much it would constrain him.

Where the comparison breaks down: CAATSA targeted Russia's defense and intelligence sectors after 2016 election interference and included a congressional review mechanism on presidential waivers, whereas the 2026 law centers on secondary oil tariffs, gives the president much broader unilateral waiver latitude, and is tied to an active, ongoing peace negotiation.

• Whether Trump will actually use his waiver authority to soften or delay the sanctions, as the law allows on national interest grounds
• How China and India, the top two buyers of Russian oil, will respond to the tariff threat
• Whether the law will complicate or pressure the still unresolved U.S. brokered Ukraine peace negotiations, as Russia has warned
• The 30 day implementation clock has just started, so no tariffs or sanctions have yet taken effect

Watch whether Trump issues a waiver notice to Congress within the law's 30 day implementation window, and how China and India respond to the tariff threat.

• New York Times: Russia Warns New U.S. Sanctions Law Would Harm Trump’s Peace Efforts · Headline and summary · 19 September 2026
• BBC News: Trump signs sweeping Russia sanctions bill · Full article · 18 September 2026

Read the original reporting at the links above. Our analysis can be wrong and may change as evidence develops.

• Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act — Wikipedia
• House Advances Russia Sanctions Bill Threatening 100% Tariffs on India, China — BigGo Finance
• Trump's Ukraine-Russia peace plan, in the full 28 points — Axios
• U.S. offers Ukraine 15-year security guarantee as part of peace plan — NPR