The US president has invoked a national-interest exemption to suspend sweeping penalties under the Lindsey Graham bill
US President Donald Trump has suspended sweeping new sanctions against Russia that he signed into law just a month ago, invoking a national-interest exemption to waive penalties targeting Moscow’s economy and countries purchasing Russian energy.
In an executive order issued on Friday, Trump waived sanctions and tariffs mandated by the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, including proposed 500% tariffs on Russian imports and 100% tariffs on major buyers of Russian oil and gas.
“I have submitted to the Congress a certification that the issuance of such a waiver is in the national interests of the United States and a report explaining the basis for the certification,” Trump wrote.
The legislation, championed by the late Senator Lindsey Graham, has been described by supporters as a “bone-crushing” measure aimed at driving Russian energy exports out of the global market. Hawkish US lawmakers argued that existing restrictions had allowed Moscow to circumvent economic pressure.
Trump unexpectedly lifted sanctions on Russian diesel exports earlier this month in an effort to curb rising energy prices ahead of the US midterm elections. The move sparked outrage in Ukraine and among America’s European allies, prompting a bipartisan group of US senators to accuse Trump of betraying Kiev.
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