President Trump signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 into law on September 18, arming himself with tariff powers aimed at Russia's energy buyers. The law also feeds into his separate campaign against Iran, since Moscow and Tehran have built a close military relationship Washington wants to break.
President Trump signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 into law on September 18, giving himself a tariff weapon aimed first at Russia and, by extension, at Iran. Days later, at the UN General Assembly on September 22, he tied the new powers to ending the war in Ukraine, saying: "If necessary, I will have to use them. It's time to stop the killing."
The Act's tariff mechanics
The law lets Trump impose a 100% tariff on all US imports from the top five buyers of Russian crude oil or natural gas, a group that currently comprises China, India, Turkey, Brazil, and Azerbaijan. It also allows a mandatory tariff of up to 500% on any remaining direct Russian imports, blocks transactions tied to Russia's shadow-fleet tankers, and bars US capital markets from processing funds connected to the Russian government. The European Union would rank fourth among buyers as a bloc, but the Act does not currently apply to trading blocs.
Pressure on Kyiv and Moscow alike
Applying the 100% tariff is left to Trump's discretion, which keeps pressure on Xi Jinping and Narendra Modi to push Vladimir Putin toward negotiations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed the Act's approach, yet Trump controls the waivers on its enforcement, and he has previously used the threat of easing or delaying tariffs to produce the outcome he wants.
Severing Russia from Iran
Weakening Russia's ability to back Iran militarily and economically is the Act's secondary purpose. Moscow and Tehran have built a deeply co-dependent military relationship through drone technology, missile sharing, and sanctions-busting oil swaps, and forcing Putin into a diplomatic process to save his own economy would make him less likely to back Tehran with advanced air defense systems or satellite intelligence.
Washington also reinforces this pressure through the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996, extended through 2031, its active tool against China's role in supporting Iran. Just last week, the US Treasury Department sanctioned Chinese and Hong Kong facilitators that keep Iran's industrial and transport networks operational, networks Tehran uses to move petroleum, fertiliser, and chemicals across land borders. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had already warned, on 24 August, that countries would need to sever business ties with Iran or risk being forced out of the dollar-based financial system.
Source: Oilprice.com
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
