More than 60 of the 100 US senators – including Senate Majority Leader John Thune – on Thursday backed a new bill that would give President Donald Trump the power to impose tariffs of up to 100% on India and four other countries to buy Russian oil, in a legislative push that gained new momentum after the death of its chief architect, Senator Lindsey Graham.
The bill, officially called the Russia Sanctions Act of 2026, has the support of 62 senators from both parties, according to a Senate Foreign Relations Committee statement, enough to pass the 60-vote threshold needed to overcome a filibuster. The term filibuster refers to a political tactic in American politics whereby senators attempt to delay or prevent a vote on a measure by extending debate on the issue indefinitely. It has also received White House support and could pass before August, according to its supporters.
The bill’s lead sponsors include Darlene Graham, Lindsey Graham’s sister, who was appointed by South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster to complete his term and be sworn in in the Senate on July 14 — two days before the bill’s official introduction. Graham, the first woman to represent South Carolina in the Senate, introduced the bill alongside Democratic Senators Richard Blumenthal and Jeanne Shaheen.
Lindsey Graham, who led the legislation with Blumenthal for more than a year, died suddenly on July 11 of an aortic dissection. He had obtained White House approval for the text of the draft law a few days ago, after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kiev.
The bill gives the Trump administration the authority to impose customs duties of up to 100% on the five largest buyers of Russian oil and natural gas. The senators explained that the tariffs will currently target China, India, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan for their oil purchases. The legislation also provides for tariffs on the five countries that are doing their best to help Russia evade current sanctions. The exact tariff rate for each country will be determined by the US Trade Representative.
The draft law provides significant exemptions to European allies who continue to purchase Russian natural gas. “The bill would exempt countries whose imports of Russian natural gas represent less than 15 percent of total Russian natural gas exports, and which are taking significant steps to reduce those imports. The bill calls for the US Trade Representative to reassess the top 5 buyers every 180 days, and can adjust tariff rates based on changes in purchasing behavior,” according to a summary released by the bill’s Senate supporters. The text also includes an exception for US purchases of Russian low-enriched uranium used in US nuclear reactors.
State Department spokesman Randhir Jaiswal responded to a question about bipartisan US senators unveiling a bill that seeks to use tariffs to pressure China and India to reduce their dependence on Russian energy, saying New Delhi is “closely following these developments.”
The legislation is a watered-down version of the original Russia Sanctions Act, introduced in the Senate in April 2025, which proposed imposing tariffs of up to 500% on countries that buy Russian energy, including India. The tariff was reduced to 100%, and its scope was narrowed from a wide range of countries to the five largest buyers. The bill also contains a waiver provision that allows the president to suspend sanctions and tariffs on a country, provided he certifies to Congress that doing so is in the national interest of the United States.
