US Democrats oppose bill to expand sanctions on Russia

Two U.S. House Democrats have opposed a proposed bill to expand sanctions on Russia, warning it could grant President Donald Trump sweeping authority to impose tariffs without congressional approval.

Representatives Brad Schneider of Illinois and Don Beyer of Virginia said in a joint statement that the legislation would effectively allow the president to bypass Congress under the guise of targeting Russia.

“Unfortunately, the Sanctioning Russia Act is nothing more than a backdoor attempt to greenlight tariffs of up to 100 per cent on our major trading partners while surreptitiously handcuffing Congress’ ability to stop Trump from further escalating his global trade war,” the lawmakers said.

They called on fellow members of Congress to block the measure.

The criticism follows the introduction of a revised version of the bill by Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal a day earlier. The proposal предусматривает mandatory sanctions targeting Russian President Vladimir Putin, senior government officials, major business figures, and foreign companies cooperating with Russia’s defence sector.

It also calls for tariffs of up to 100% on the largest purchasers of Russian energy exports, significantly expanding the scope of economic pressure measures.

By Tamilla Hasanova