US lawmakers seek 500% tariffs on countries buying Russian oil & gas

A bipartisan group of US lawmakers have sought tariffs to the tune of 500 per cent on countries buying Russian oil and gas.

Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham have floated a bill that seeks a fresh round of primary and secondary sanctions on Russia as a punishment for its war on Ukraine and lack of intention to reach a ceasefire. Twenty-five lawmakers from each party have co-sponsored the bill.

As part of the secondary sanctions, they have sought that all those countries buying Russian oil, gas, uranium, and other products be slapped with 500 per cent tariffs on any trade that they do with the United States. Russian energy exports are a critical part of Russia’s economy.

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Last month, President Donald Trump had imposed similar secondary sanctions on Venezuela. He announced that all countries buying Venezuelan oil and gas would pay 25 per cent in tariffs for any trade with the United States.

As per Blumenthal and Graham’s bill, China, India, and Europe are going to be the worst-affected countries as they are the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas. Since the beginning of the Russian war on Ukraine, India has ramped up the purchase of discounted Russian crude oil and has garnered criticism in the West.

Between December 2021 and January 2025, China bought 47 per cent of Russian crude oil exports, followed by India (37 per cent) and the European Union (6 per cent), according to an analysis from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).

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As for Russian gas, the EU purchased 49 per cent of the liquified natural gas (LNG), followed by China (22 per cent) and Japan (18 per cent), and the EU was the largest buyer of pipelined gas as well with a share of 39 per cent, followed by China (27 per cent) and Turkey (27 per cent), as per the analysis.

In a press release, Blumenthal and Graham said that “these sanctions would be imposed if Russia refuses to engage in good faith negotiations for a lasting peace with Ukraine or initiates another effort, including military invasion, that undermines the sovereignty of Ukraine after peace is negotiated”.

Blumenthal and Graham pitched the sanctions as part of efforts to force Russia to reach a ceasefire at the earliest.

“These sanctions against Russia are at the ready and will receive overwhelming bipartisan, bicameral support if presented to the Senate and House for a vote. We support an immediate ceasefire to secure a lasting, honourable peace,” said Blumenthal and Graham in a statement.