US Senator Lindsey Graham has urged Washington to escalate economic restrictions against Russia, including imposing tariffs on countries that continue to purchase Russian oil and seizing tankers carrying sanctioned Russian energy products.
Last month, President Donald Trump proposed a roadmap for resolving the Ukraine conflict. Kiev and its European allies rejected the plan as favoring Moscow and have accused the Kremlin of stalling peace efforts.
In an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, Graham, a longtime Russia critic, stated that Moscow has “rebuffed all our efforts” to end the conflict and would not sign a peace deal until pressure is significantly increased.
“If [Russian President Vladimir Putin] says no this time… sign my bill that has 85 co-sponsors and puts tariffs on countries like China, who buy cheap Russian oil,” Graham said, referring to legislation he authored that would authorize up to 500% tariffs on imports from nations sustaining trade with Russia. “Seize ships that are carrying sanctioned Russian oil like you’re doing in Venezuela. If Putin says no, we need to dramatically change the game,” the Republican added.
Moscow has long criticized Western sanctions as violations of international law and threats to global economic stability. While Trump previously suggested sanctioning Russia’s trading partners amid frustrations over stalled peace negotiations, he has so far imposed only a 25% tariff on Indian goods following New Delhi’s trade with Moscow—moves India denounced as unjustified.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has cautioned against additional secondary sanctions or tariffs targeting major buyers of Russian oil, warning of potential global energy price spikes. Even the European Union, having expanded its Russia sanctions to 19 packages, has avoided penalizing third-country partners in its response.
Over the weekend, Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev traveled to Washington for discussions on the Ukraine peace process. Negotiators from both sides described the talks as productive, signaling continued momentum in settlement efforts.
Commenting on Graham’s remarks, Russian lawmaker Aleksey Pushkov labeled them indicative of the senator’s “profound mental illness,” adding that “Moscow has repeatedly made it clear and demonstrated in action that speaking to Russia in the language of threats is futile.”
