WASHINGTON, July 22. /TASS/. The US administration is seeking to soften provisions of a Russia sanctions bill drafted in Congress and secure broad authority to waive the restrictions, Dr. Mark Episkopos, Eurasia Research Fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, told TASS.

He was responding to a question about whether US President Donald Trump’s remarks on the bill and his recent decision to provide Ukraine with a license to manufacture Patriot air defense systems should be viewed as a tougher White House approach toward Russia.

"A Patriot licensing deal can be a long-term benefit to Ukraine in the context of postwar reconstruction but will not tangibly affect its war effort, as the logistical complexities and kinetic risks involved make it unlikely that units will be mass-produced anytime soon," the expert said.

"Instead of holding up a sanctions bill that might secure a veto-proof level of support in the Senate next year, the White House opted to negotiate its contents with the goal of moderating the language on secondary sanctions, granting the president wide waiver authority, and ensuring that his hands are not tied when it comes to negotiating the terms of a prospective peace deal," Episkopos said.

"Though US attention has been occupied by the Middle East, it remains a core American objective to secure a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine going into 2027," he added.

Bill

An updated bill seeking to tighten unilateral sanctions against Russia and impose tariffs on its trading partners was formally introduced in the US Senate on July 16.

The revised legislation proposes sanctions against Russia’s senior political and military leadership, state-owned companies and foreign businesses that Washington claims support the Russian defense industry. It also calls for restrictions against the Bank of Russia, Sberbank and Gazprombank, as well as major Russian energy projects, including Yamal LNG, three Arctic LNG projects and future Russian energy projects in the Arctic.

Instead of the previously proposed 500% tariffs on imports from countries purchasing Russian energy resources, the bill would impose 100% tariffs on the five largest buyers of Russian oil and natural gas, as well as five countries that allegedly help Moscow circumvent Western energy sanctions. The senators also proposed restrictions against the so-called shadow fleet.

On July 14, Trump said the bill had a strong chance of passing but maintained that some of its key provisions had not been discussed with him. These provisions essentially concern Washington’s plans to impose secondary sanctions on Russia’s trading partners, including India and China. Trump said the issue still required consideration. Axios later reported that the Senate had not yet set a timetable for reviewing the initiative.

Meanwhile, US Senator Rand Paul warned in an opinion article published last year by Responsible Statecraft that the United States itself would be the country most harmed by the bill’s possible passage, both economically and strategically.