US President Donald Trump has greenlit a major bipartisan sanctions bill that has the potential to completely transform international trade and energy sectors. The new sanctions bill, entitled the ‘Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025,’ aims to cripple the Russian ‘war machine’ by imposing a mind-boggling 500% tariff on all goods and services provided by nations that import Russian petroleum and uranium.
This announcement, made on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, marks a momentous turning point in the “America First” trade policy of the Trump administration and its determination to compel a peace agreement within the Ukraine crisis.
500% Ultimatum: Punishing Putin’s War Financing
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The bill—led by Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal—makes it mandatory for the President to raise import duties to at least 500% for countries that continue to buy Russian energy.
Specifically, Sen. Graham explained after a press conference with President Trump, ‘This bill offers us tremendous leverage over large economies such as China, India, and Brazil.’
“It will give President Trump the ability to sanction those nations that purchase cheap Russian oil to finance Putin’s military machine,” Graham posted to the platform. “Ukraine is making concessions for peace while Putin is all talk while killing the innocent.”
The Ukraine Peace Trigger
The punitive 500% tariffs are intended to be a conditional measure. They shall be activated if the US President feels that Russia fails to conduct negotiations with regard to a peace agreement with Ukraine. For that matter, the sanctions shall be lifted if:
A peace accord is negotiated and is in place.
Russia stops all efforts to subvert or overthrow the government of Ukraine.
There are no further military invasions.
India’s Diplomatic Efforts for Relief
The new bill is timely because the Indian government is already facing a 25% tariff imposed by the US government in August 2025. The earlier tariff, alongside other tariffs, has already caused total tariffs on some Indian products to hit 50%.
This was disclosed by US Sen. Graham, who was visited last month by the Ambassador of India to the US, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, to demonstrate the reduction in Russian oil imports in India and to argue for scrapping the “reciprocal” duty of 25%.
Trump’s Position: Addressing House Republicans, Trump admitted Prime Minister Narendra Modi is “not happy” with his trade policies but assured that India has decreased its Russian oil imports “very substantially.”
The Warning: Although the cut was announced, Trump warned that theLKTs could increase very quickly if India fails to fall in line with the US policy on Russian energy.
Global Economic Fallout: 500% Risk
However, detractors of the bill, such as Senator Rand Paul, predict a possible “economic calamity.” In view of the fact that the 500% tariff is imposed on all products and services of an offending nation, it will effectively amount to a complete trade ban on some of the world’s major economies.
BRICS Countries’ Reactions: The pressure for trade has been described as “unjustified and unreasonable” by India, as it considers its own “energy security to be of prime significance to 1.4 billion people.”
Energy Shift: According to data in late 2025, it is clear that India has already started diversifying its imports by increasing purchases of U.S. crude to nearly 11% levels, while Reliance Industries and other state-owned refiners have reduced purchases from Russian companies such as Rosneft and Lukoil.
Key Takeaways: Sanctioning Russia Act
The Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 is no less than a high-stakes bipartisan bill that hands the US President extraordinary powers to levy at least 500% tariff rates for all goods and services of a nation that keeps buying either Russian-origin petroleum products, uranium, or natural gas.
Approved to move forward by President Trump during a fruitful session with Senator Lindsey Graham on January 7, 2026, this bill is especially targeted toward major international economies such as China, India, and Brazil. This bill has been made as an “economic bunker buster” to compel these countries to cut support to Russia.
A bipartisan Senate vote is expected as early as next week, although this bill contains an element of waiver in matters of national security to determine which countries deserve to face this kind of severe punishment based on their level of diplomatic support as well as their assistance in reaching Russia-Ukraine peace.