US President Donald Trump has signed a new sanctions package targeting Russia, the White House confirmed on Friday. The legislation, named in memory of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, had previously secured strong bipartisan support in Congress.

The bill passed the Senate by an 86-11 vote and cleared the House of Representatives with a 262-159 majority.

The legislation introduces a broad range of measures aimed at increasing economic pressure on Moscow over Russia’s continuing war in Ukraine. It also creates a separate framework that would keep sanctions against Iran in place through 2031.

What does the new legislation target?

The sanctions package covers a number of Russian individuals and strategically important areas of the economy, including financial institutions and vessels involved in transporting Russian energy exports.

One of the most significant provisions gives the US president the ability to impose tariffs of up to 100% on imports from the five largest buyers of Russian oil or natural gas. Certain countries, however, can be excluded from these measures.

The law also allows Washington to target up to five countries that are considered to be helping Russia bypass restrictions on its energy exports.

The measures could create additional pressure on trade relations between the United States and major purchasers of Russian oil, particularly China and India.

Ukraine welcomes the legislation

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed Trump’s decision and thanked the US lawmakers who backed the legislation.

Zelenskyy also highlighted Graham’s previous support for maintaining pressure on Russia. According to Zelenskyy, the late senator had repeatedly stressed during his visits to Ukraine that sanctions should not be relaxed.

He said that fully implementing the new law would be an important way of honoring Graham’s legacy and argued that sustained pressure on Russia should ultimately contribute to ending the war.

Graham had been one of the most prominent supporters of Ukraine in the US Senate. He had returned from a visit to Ukraine shortly before his unexpected death in July.

Kremlin response

Moscow has criticized the additional sanctions. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said before the legislation was signed that further US restrictions could make diplomatic efforts toward a peaceful settlement of the war in Ukraine more difficult.