Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) introduced legislation on Tuesday seeking to impose primary and secondary sanctions against Russia if it does not agree to long lasting peace with its neighboring country, Ukraine.
The group of lawmakers agreed to also support a 500 percent tariff on imported goods from countries that buy Russian oil, gas, uranium and other products.
“The sanctions against Russia require tariffs on countries who purchase Russian oil, gas, uranium and other products. They are hard hitting for a reason,” the Senators wrote in a Tuesday release.
“The dominating view in the United States Senate is that Russia is the aggressor, and that this horrific war and Putin’s aggression must end now and be deterred in the future,” they added.
Airstrikes on Ukrainian infrastructure have continued to claim lives as both Russia and the neighboring Eastern European nation have agreed to “eliminate the use of force” in the Black Sea and end strikes on energy facilities for 30 days.
The small step toward peace came a week after the Kremlin struck the Donetsk region in Ukraine on the same day after President Trump threatened to impose sanctions on Moscow in an effort to drive ceasefire negotiations.
The president has expressed vexation with his counterpart Vladimir Putin for stalling methods to end the foreign conflict.
“If I think they’re tapping us along, I will not be happy about it,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, referring to the situation abroad.
Senators who signed on to impose primary and secondary sanctions against Russia shared the same sense of annoyance with Putin over thwarted peace efforts.
“We share President Trump’s frustration with Russia when it comes to obtaining a ceasefire, and support President Trump’s desire to achieve a lasting, just and honorable peace. In 1994, as part of the Budapest Memorandum Ukraine gave up approximately 1,700 nuclear weapons with a promise from the U.S., Russia and United Kingdom that Ukraine’s sovereignty would be honored in the future. This failed to deter Russian aggression,” the Senators said.
“In 2014 and 2015, the Minsk agreements were reached to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but again, it did nothing to deter future aggression. In 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine once more, leading to deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the displacement of millions.”
During talks in Saudi Arabia, Russia’s negotiators urged the U.S. to help lift sanctions on Russian banks and promote Russian fertilizer and agriculture on the world market before agreeing to a ceasefire.
“It is our hope that in 2025, President Trump and his team will achieve what has eluded the world in the past: ending Russian aggression against Ukraine permanently and ensuring the survivability of a free and democratic Ukraine,” the legislators wrote.
“These sanctions against Russia are at the ready and will receive overwhelming bipartisan, bicameral support if presented to the Senate and House for a vote.”
The full list of sanction cosponsors include Sens. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Angus King (I-Maine), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), John Curtis (R-Utah), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Jon Husted (R-Ohio), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.V.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Martin Heinrich (D-New Mexico), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jim Justice (R-W.W.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Steve Daines (R-Montana) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.).
Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Mike Quigley (D-Ill.), Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) and Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) are introducing companion legislation in the House.
