The US Congress may not wait for President Donald Trump's approval of anti-Russian sanctions and impose them already. Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, writes about this in his article for the Wall Street Journal, UNN reports.
Details
According to him, the bill developed by him and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has bipartisan support - "85 senators from across the political spectrum."
We need to stop thinking about holding Vladimir Putin accountable for Russia's bloody invasion of Ukraine and actually do it. Mr. Putin is a thug who understands only force, military or economic. My sanctions bill... will deliver the necessary blow to the engine of the Russian war machine - oil trade.
He points out that the bill combines devastating sanctions against Russian oligarchs and countries that finance Moscow's terror by buying its oil, and both components will work together to force Russia to the negotiating table.
President Trump has said he wants to hold China and other consumers of Russian oil accountable for their investments in Mr. Putin's war. This bill, proposed back in April, will give him the tools to deliver on his promise.
US lifts sanctions on Belarusian airline Belavia11.09.25, 14:37 • [views_3159]
At the same time, according to him, no matter how the president feels about this goal, "there is no reason for Congress not to pursue it."
For months, my colleagues have been saying that they are "ready to pass" our bill if Mr. Trump wants it. The framers of the Constitution would be puzzled by this expression. They never imagined a system in which the legislature would have to wait for the president's pat on the head to protect our national security. The framers of the Constitution gave Congress the power and responsibility to act as an independent, co-equal branch of government when the moment demanded it.
He calls for the sanctions bill to be brought to the Senate floor and "show Mr. Putin and his Kremlin cronies what true democracy looks like."
Recall
A bipartisan group of US senators proposes recognizing Russia and Belarus as state sponsors of terrorism. This will happen if the countries do not return more than 19,000 Ukrainian children taken during the war.