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US Senators Brief Allies on Sanctions 07/11 06:13
ROME (AP) -- The co-sponsors of a new bipartisan U.S. sanctions package
targeting Russia briefed European allies and Ukraine on the legislation
Thursday, in an effort to show continued resolve to help Kyiv and force Moscow
to the negotiating table through what they describe as a "game-changer" bill.
The bill backed by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democratic Sen.
Richard Blumenthal calls for a 500% tariff on goods imported from countries
that continue to buy Russian oil, gas, uranium and other exports -- targeting
nations like China and India, which account for roughly 70% of Russia's energy
trade and bankroll much of its war effort.
Graham and Blumenthal told The Associated Press in Rome that they hope to
bring the legislation to a vote in the Senate before the August recess. They
said Thursday they are convinced that it would give President Donald Trump the
tools and flexibility he needs to force Russian President Vladimir Putin to
negotiate an end to the war.
"We're not gonna play whack-a-mole anymore with Russia and sanctions,"
Graham said. "We're going after his (Putin's) customer base. And that's what
the Europeans, I think, are most pleased with."
"This is not just kind of a continuation of our current strategy. This is a
real turning point," Blumenthal added. "It's a real game-changer because it
says to Putin, 'We're going to hit you right where it hurts.'"
A coalition of the willing
Graham and Blumenthal briefed a meeting in Rome of the coalition of the
willing, the 30-plus countries that are prepared to send troops to keep the
peace in Ukraine after hostilities cease. The meeting, which the United States
attended for the first time, was held on the sidelines of a Ukraine recovery
conference.
Joining them was retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy for
Ukraine and Russia. The senators stressed that no U.S. troops would be in
Ukraine, but that they participated in the gathering at the invitation of host
Italy to bolster the U.S. presence at the Rome meeting and show congressional
commitment to Ukraine.
"I think we gave Ukraine, the Europeans encouragement that America, the
Congress was involved in a bipartisan fashion," Graham said. "We want to
empower the president to get Putin to the table and with tools he doesn't have
today."
"Hopefully we can get this legislation to the president by the end of the
month, is the goal," he said.
A deadline before summer break
Congress is prepared to act on the legislation, which has overwhelming
bipartisan support in the Senate, but has been waiting for Trump to give the
green light before lawmakers recess for the summer break.
So far, the White House has expressed some reservations. Trump wants full
authority over the waiver process to lift the sanctions, tariffs or other
penalties, without having to cede control to Congress.
Under the initial bill, the president "may terminate" the penalties under
certain circumstances, but immediately reimpose them if the violations resume.
Graham said the president would be allowed to waive the sanctions, for 180
days, and could also renew a waiver.
But the president's decision would eventually be subject to congressional
review. To overturn the president's waiver would require a vote in Congress. It
would need to clear the Senate's high-bar of a 60-vote threshold, Graham said.
That is often difficult to reach in the narrowly divided chamber.
"That's not going to happen, unless some crazy thing happens," he said.
The senators explained that the waiver authority in their bill is standard,
similar to what has been included in past legislation. But with the president's
insistence on fully waiver authority, and also Congress wanting its own
backstop, the legislation continues to evolve.
A work in progress
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said this week he hopes to bring the
measure forward before Congress goes on recess in August. House Speaker Mike
Johnson has also signaled a readiness to act in his chamber.
While Thune said the sanctions bill has "tremendous" bipartisan support, the
GOP leader acknowledged it's still a work in progress as the White House
engages with the process.
"We are working with the administration, with the House to try and get it in
a form where it's ready," he said. Whether that happens in the next few weeks
is still "a bit of an open question," he said. "But I'm hopeful we can."
Graham and Blumenthal said the legislation would also have a deterrent
effect on China and curb its ambitions in Taiwan, with Graham saying the threat
of such a massive economic hit for its support of Russia was a "trial run for
Taiwan."
"The other important lesson for China here is that a small country,
out-manned and out-gunned, can win," Blumenthal said.
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