A group of US senators has introduced an updated version of a sanctions bill targeting Russia and the largest buyers of Russian energy resources. According to WSJ, the measure would allow the US president to impose tariffs of up to 100% on goods entering the United States from countries that continue purchasing oil and gas from Moscow. The authors say the text was coordinated with the administration of Donald Trump, although no date for a vote has yet been set.
Compared with the version submitted in April 2025, the proposal has been significantly softened. The earlier draft envisioned tariffs of up to 500% for all countries buying Russian oil, gas, petroleum products, and uranium. Now, according to Reuters, the restrictions would apply only to the five largest importers of Russian oil and the five largest importers of Russian gas, with the list to be reviewed every 180 days.
Sources cited by Reuters identify China, India, Slovakia, Hungary, and Azerbaijan as the biggest buyers of Russian oil. The main gas importers are listed as China, France, Japan, Hungary, and Belgium. An exemption is предусмотрено for some gas buyers: if a country accounts for less than 15% of Russia’s gas exports and is reducing its dependence, tariffs may be waived.
The new version also differs in that a substantial share of the measures is no longer tied to whether Moscow agrees to peace talks. Once enacted, sanctions would have to be introduced within 30 days, though the president would retain the power to lift them if deemed in the US national interest, provided Congress is notified.
Beyond the tariff mechanism, the bill includes sanctions against Vladimir Putin, Russia’s top leadership, banks, state-owned companies, energy firms, the Central Bank, the “shadow fleet,” and the Yamal LNG and Arctic LNG projects. It would also bar Americans from buying Russian sovereign debt and from conducting certain transactions with the Russian government and energy sector.
The measure currently has backing from 26 senators, split evenly between the two parties. The previous version had 85 co-sponsors but never reached a vote. After talks with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in July 2026, Trump said the bill had a “good chance” of becoming law, while also proposing the addition of provisions on Iran and Hezbollah.
US politics analyst Alexandra Filippenko told Novaya Gazeta Europe that the bill has a strong chance of passing because it largely codifies existing measures while leaving decisions on new restrictions to the president.
In her view, the main obstacle is now time: the text must rebuild support in the Senate and move through further coordination, while lawmakers are soon due to leave for recess. Some Democrats have already criticized the bill, saying it gives Trump excessively broad tariff powers, including powers that could be used against US allies.