President Donald Trump signed a bill into law on Friday that imposes a new round of sanctions against Russia amid its war with Ukraine.
The new law, formally known as the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, targets Russia’s energy sector by authorizing the president to impose up to 100% tariffs on countries purchasing Russian oil and natural gas. It sanctions Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Russian officials and entities as well, and also extends sanctions on Iran’s energy and weapons sectors.
The bill’s purpose is to apply economic pressure on Moscow by targeting resources that are needed to continue the war with Kyiv. The legislation was named after the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, who drafted the bill with help from Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) in the Senate.
An updated version was introduced by Sen. Darline Graham Nordone (R-SC), the younger sister of Graham who was appointed to his seat after he died of a heart condition in July. Graham had returned from a trip to Ukraine, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, roughly 36 hours before he died unexpectedly.
Zelensky penned an X post after Trump signed the bill into law, recalling his last interaction with Graham while thanking the president for supporting it.
“When Lindsey Graham was here in Ukraine, he would always talk about how important it was not to ease pressure on Russia, to strengthen sanctions and seek a path to peace,” he said. “Senator Graham never doubted for a second that America has enough strength to stand up to dictators and achieve results if it acts THE RIGHT WAY.”
“The best way to honor Lindsey’s memory will be to implement the provisions of this law fully and swiftly,” Zelensky added. “And the best reward for everyone helping us put pressure on Russia to end its war will be peace. Peace – and an end to all the problems and challenges this war has brought.”
Trump signed the bill weeks after his two U.S. envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, visited Moscow and Kyiv in back-to-back trips for discussions on ending the war. The talks resulted in no breakthroughs.
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During their visit to Moscow, Putin ordered a weekend-long ceasefire as an apparent sign of good faith. The 72-hour pause on strikes applied to Kyiv, not the rest of Ukraine. Renewed airstrikes between the two sides followed, with Russia and Ukraine attacking each other’s energy infrastructure with drones and missiles.
The Russia sanctions bill that Trump signed into law passed the Senate by a large bipartisan margin before the House advanced it earlier this week.