- Lead. President Trump on September 19 signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, passed 86-11 in the Senate and 262-159 in the House, authorising tariffs of up to 100 per cent on goods from countries purchasing Russian crude oil or natural gas.
- Fact. The act also extends the 1996 Iran Sanctions Act for five years, tightening restrictions on Iranian oil revenue even as US forces remain engaged in the region.
- Stake. China, Russia’s single largest energy buyer, issued sharp condemnation within hours of the signing and warned of countermeasures, adding fresh pressure to the Xi-Trump summit scheduled for later this month.
What the Law Does
The legislation, named after the late South Carolina senator who championed its passage, gives the president authority to impose tariffs of up to 100 per cent on goods from any country that the administration determines is purchasing Russian crude oil or natural gas, or otherwise helping Moscow evade Western sanctions. Supporters designed the provision as a secondary-sanctions instrument, allowing Washington to penalise third-party nations without requiring direct evidence of formal sanctions violations—a discretion that gives the executive branch broad room to act or threaten to act.
The measure targets Russian officials, financial institutions, defence-related networks, and the shadow fleet of tankers that has allowed Russian crude to reach buyers in Asia and beyond despite the G7 price cap regime. Iran sanctions are addressed separately: the act extends the Iran Sanctions Act for five years, providing the legal framework for continued secondary sanctions against companies and governments that trade with Tehran.
China’s Response
Beijing reacted quickly. China’s foreign ministry described the law as “unilateral coercive measures” that “seriously violate international law and the basic norms governing international relations,” and warned that China would “take firm countermeasures to protect Chinese companies’ legitimate rights and interests.”
China matters here because it absorbs the bulk of Russia’s discounted crude exports. Earlier this year, Chinese and Russian buyers jointly frustrated previous US efforts to isolate Iranian oil revenues, a pattern Washington now aims to interrupt with statutory tariff authority rather than administrative pressure alone. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had pledged the toughest sanctions in history against Iran; the new statute now gives that pledge a statutory backbone.
Implementation Left to Discretion
The law grants Trump substantial discretion over which countries face tariffs, the specific rates imposed, and whether certain provisions are waived for geopolitical purposes. That flexibility cuts both ways: it gives the administration leverage without forcing it to act, and it preserves space for deal-making with energy-importing nations that want to stay off the sanctions list.
Congressional supporters framed the bill as leverage to end Russia’s war in Ukraine by choking oil revenues. Critics, including several Republican senators who voted against it, argued the law could disrupt global energy markets and accelerate dollar-reserve diversification among countries threatened by sanctions exposure. The Senate’s 86-11 margin and the House’s 262-159 vote nonetheless gave the administration a clear mandate to use the new tools.
Whether Trump invokes the tariff authority—or uses it as background leverage in his negotiations with both Beijing and Moscow—will determine how much economic disruption the legislation actually produces. The Xi-Trump summit, scheduled for later in September, now takes place with this statute freshly signed, adding a new dimension to trade and energy discussions already laden with competing demands. Full details on the legislation’s scope were reported by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.