US senators reach agreement with Trump on Russia sanctions Bill over Ukraine war

WASHINGTON - Four US senators said on July 10 they had reached agreement with President Donald Trump’s administration to move forward with updated legislation on Russia sanctions.

“We are proud to announce that we have reached an agreement with the Trump Administration to move our updated Russia sanctions legislation forward. We are very pleased with this significant progress and expect to roll out the legislation very soon,” Senators Richard Blumenthal, Lindsey Graham, Jeanne Shaheen and Roger Wicker said in a statement.

“As Russia intensifies its slaughter of civilians, it is imperative that the legislative and executive branches work together to create tools to exact a heavy price on those who buy Russian oil and natural gas, fuelling the Putin war machine,” the statement said.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The legislation, which Graham has been working on with fellow Republicans and Democrats for months, would impose sanctions on countries doing business with Russia, including buyers of its energy exports, over Moscow’s failure to negotiate a peace deal with Ukraine.

Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Trump met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier this week in Ankara. The tone of the meeting was a sharp departure from his past harsh criticism of Zelensky, which has included Trump calling him “ungrateful”.

On July 8, Trump said the two had developed a “very good” relationship and both Moscow and Kyiv wanted to end the war that began with Russia’s invasion in February 2022. REUTERS