The US has softened the bill on sanctions against Russia: tariffs have been reduced from 500% to 100%

US senators have introduced an updated version of Republican Lindsey Graham’s bill to tighten sanctions against Russia. The document, which was negotiated with US President Donald Trump, provides for maximum tariffs of 100% for the largest buyers of Russian energy resources instead of the previously proposed 500%.

This is reported by Reuters.

The bill received support from representatives of the Republican and Democratic parties. Its goal is to increase sanctions pressure on Russian officials and reduce Russia’s income from the sale of oil and natural gas.

The tariffs will apply to the five largest buyers

The updated version of the document is significantly different from the initial proposal that Senators Lindsey Graham and Democrat Richard Blumenthal presented in April 2025.

The previous version provided for the introduction of tariffs of up to 500% for countries that buy Russian oil and gas. In the new version, the maximum rate has been reduced to 100%.

In addition, the restrictions are proposed to be applied only to the five largest importers of Russian energy resources.

Among the largest buyers of Russian crude oil are China, India, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan.

The five main importers of Russian natural gas include China, France, Japan, Hungary and Belgium.

Exceptions have been provided for individual countries

The bill provides for the possibility of exempting individual states from tariff restrictions.

The exception may apply to countries that purchase less than 15% of Russian natural gas exports and at the same time take significant steps to reduce dependence on Russian energy resources.

According to Reuters, Japan, France, Hungary and Belgium may fall under the relevant criteria.

The Central Bank of the Russian Federation and the “shadow fleet” may be subject to sanctions

A separate block of the bill concerns sanctions directly against Russian structures.

The document provides for restrictions on the so-called shadow fleet of tankers, which Russia uses to transport oil in circumvention of international sanctions.

Sanctions may also be imposed against Russian financial institutions, including the Central Bank of the Russian Federation.

The restrictions are proposed to be extended to Russia’s largest state energy projects. In particular, the document mentions Yamal LNG, as well as Arctic LNG-1, Arctic LNG-2 and Arctic LNG-3.

Trump will be able to cancel sanctions

The updated version of the bill gives the US president the right to cancel the sanctions provided for in the document.

This will be possible if the head of the White House determines that the corresponding decision meets the national interests of the United States.

According to one of the senators’ assistants, the new text of the document was the result of several months of negotiations with Donald Trump. Currently, this version is a compromise option that has received support from the parties.

Trump previously said he would include sanctions on Iran and Hezbollah in the bill. At the same time, Senator Richard Blumenthal urged not to expand the list of targets and to focus on advancing the already agreed document.

The bill currently has 26 co-sponsors. The Senate is confident in its further advancement, and Donald Trump has said that the document has a high chance of being approved and becoming law.