[UPDATE] Trump signs the bill authorizing 100% tariffs on buyers of Russian oil
The law, named for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, also requires sanctions on Russian officials, defense contractors and shadow-fleet tankers; the House cleared it 214-211 on Sept. 16.
The signing. Trump signed the Russia sanctions bill into law on Friday, Sept. 18, in the Oval Office. The powers. The law lets him tax imports from countries that keep buying Russian oil at rates as high as 100% of an item's value — a doubling of its price at the border. It also requires sanctions (bans on doing business with named people or companies) on Russian leaders, on foreign firms working with Russia's defense industry, and on the aging tankers that move Russian crude outside Western insurance rules. The votes. The measure passed the Senate earlier. It squeezed through the House 214-211 two days before the signing. Where it stands. The tariffs are authorized, not imposed: nothing takes effect until Trump names a country and a rate, and the White House has not said whether he will while talks with Moscow continue.
PREVIOUSLY
- Sept. 5–6 — The bill sat unsigned while the White House ran its own diplomacy: Witkoff and Kushner met Putin in Moscow, then Zelensky in Kyiv. Trump spoke with Putin by phone on Sept. 9 and again around Sept. 10.
- Sept. 16 — The House cleared the bill 214-211; the Senate had passed it earlier.
- Friday, Sept. 18 — Trump signed it in the Oval Office.