A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers has introduced sweeping legislation that could impose tariffs of up to 100 per cent on China, India and other major buyers of Russian energy as Washington seeks to cut funding for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
The Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026, introduced Tuesday with support from more than two dozen bipartisan co-sponsors, would target countries that remain among the largest purchasers of Russian crude oil and natural gas.
The legislation was championed by late Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who died over the weekend. The draft was completed before Graham travelled to Kyiv last week for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Under the proposed law, the five largest buyers of Russian oil — China, India, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan — could face U.S. tariffs of up to 100 per cent.
The legislation would also target the five leading purchasers of Russian natural gas, including China, France, Belgium, Japan and Hungary. Countries accounting for less than 15 per cent of Russia’s natural gas export market would be exempt from the proposed duties.
Lawmakers say the measures are intended to pressure countries to diversify their energy purchases and reduce Russia’s oil and gas revenues.
Bill would impose sweeping sanctions on Russia
Beyond tariffs, the legislation would introduce mandatory sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin, senior Russian officials, banks and corporations.
It would also prohibit U.S. entities from conducting business with Russia’s energy sector or the Russian government.
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal said the sanctions could play a decisive role in restricting Moscow’s ability to finance its military operations.
Blumenthal said the measure has frequently been described as a tariff bill but argued it goes much further by imposing broad blocking sanctions across significant parts of the Russian economy.
The proposed tariffs would be narrowly focused on the largest purchasers of Russian energy and would include limited waiver authority, he added.
If approved, the legislation would establish a 180-day review process, allowing tariffs to be lifted if sufficient progress is made in reducing Russian energy purchases.
Lawmakers are pushing for the bill to move quickly through Congress following months of negotiations.
U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated he would support the legislation and sign it into law if it receives congressional approval.
India previously faced tariffs over Russian oil purchases
The proposed measures follow earlier U.S. efforts to use tariffs to pressure major trading partners over their economic ties with Russia.
In August 2025, the Trump administration imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods linked to India’s purchases of Russian oil. The duties were added to existing 25 per cent reciprocal tariffs, bringing the country’s total tariff burden to 50 per cent.
The Russia-related 25 per cent duties were lifted on Feb. 2, shortly before the administration’s broader tariff framework under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act faced an adverse U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
The new bipartisan legislation could once again put India and China at the centre of Washington’s efforts to economically isolate Russia and reduce Moscow’s energy revenues.
