The administration of US President Donald Trump has urged Republican Senator Lindsey Graham to soften sanctions against Russia in the Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025, which has strong bipartisan support in the Senate.

Source:The Wall Street Journal, as reported by European Pravda 

Details:The Wall Street Journal reports that White House officials recently contacted Graham’s office pressing for changes to the bill’s sanctions provisions.

Aides to the senator, who asked to remain anonymous, said that among other things, the Trump administration proposed adding provisions to the draft that would allow the US president to decide whom or what to sanction.

The White House also suggested replacing the word "shall" with "may" throughout the bill, removing the mandatory nature of the sanctions, the WSJ reported.

Graham’s team expressed frustration, arguing that diluting the mandatory sanctions would render the bill ineffective and noting that Trump already has discretionary powers to impose sanctions.

Previously:Senators Lindsey Graham (Republican) and Richard Blumenthal (Democrat), supported by 82 co-sponsors, introduced the bill to impose economic sanctions on Russia for obstructing ceasefire efforts in its war of aggression against Ukraine, particularly by imposing a 500% tariff on goods imported from countries that purchase Russian oil.

The bill also has bipartisan support in the House of Representatives, where a companion bill has 33 co-sponsors.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump would make the final decision on any potential tightening of sanctions against Russia.

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