Trump Waives Russia Sanctions He Previously Signed Into Law, Prompting Immediate International And Domestic Backlash

Despite signing a congressional bill that would significantly expand the U.S. sanctions regime on Russia into law in September, President Donald Trump has now blocked the application of several of the Russia-related sanctions mandated by the bill just two days before they were meant to come into effect.

The Trump administration claimed that a waiver of the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, the official name of the legislation that would have allowed Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on imports from the five nations purchasing the most Russian oil and gas, was "in the national interests of the United States" in an executive order issued on Friday.

The order waives "the application of any sanctions provision with respect to a foreign person, any restriction with respect to a person, and any duty under the Graham Act," which includes a suspension of a massive 500% increase in tariffs on Russian goods imported to the U.S.

The move is the latest sign of the increasingly fraught relations between Washington and Kyiv. Trump recently called for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to be replaced over Kyiv's continued attacks on Russian energy infrastructure.

The president claims that these attacks, as opposed to the disruption of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz by continued hostilities between the U.S. and Iran, are responsible for surging global and domestic fuel prices, which Trump has consistently tried to reduce in a bid to boost his ailing popularity before November's midterm elections.

Trump has also said that the Ukrainian leader is more difficult to deal with than his Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin.

The suspension of sanctions prompted immediate backlash amongst U.S. supporters of the bill, as well as criticism from Ukraine.

"Donald Trump confirms again that he stands on the side of a bloodthirsty thug and the enablers of Russia's war machine and against the majority of Americans, their representatives in both houses of Congress, and our European allies," Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal said late on Friday in response to the blocked sanctions.

Blumenthal co-drafted the bill with Lindsey Graham and continued advocating for its approval after the latter's death. Lindsey Graham was a Republican Senator known for his vocal support for Ukraine and its resistance against the Russian invasion, which occurred in February 2022.

Following comprehensive Russian strikes on Ukraine's energy sector on Friday, Zelensky wrote on X on Saturday that "A U.S. sanctions blackout, easing pressure on the aggressor, financial rewards for Putin – all of this only encourages him to keep attacking."

"It is important that everyone in America also sees what is really happening. At a time when the Russians have carried out such a massive attack on our energy sector, a decision was unfortunately made in America to completely disregard the Lindsey Graham Act, which was supposed to impose truly effective pressure on Russia to bring this war to an end," Zelensky continued.

The attacks represent the latest violation of a so-called bilateral "energy ceasefire" between Moscow and Kyiv which Trump announced last weekend. Zelensky claimed that he was unaware that such a ceasefire had been negotiated.

The suspension of the Graham Act was welcomed by high-ranking Russian officials. Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund and Russia's presidential envoy for foreign investment and economic cooperation, said "the suspension of some of the provisions of the Graham Act marks an important and truly historic moment."

Negotiations and agreements between the Trump administration and Moscow have recently become increasingly frequent and substantive.

In the name of reducing fuel prices, the White House negotiated an agreement with the Kremlin that involved Russia releasing diesel to the global and American markets in exchange for a suspension of U.S. sanctions on Russian diesel until April 2027. Trump's business allies have also been considering acquiring the assets of Russian oil company Lukoil.