Trump signs Graham Act giving him authority to impose up to 100% tariffs on top buyers of Russian oil
On September 19, 2026, US President Donald Trump signed the Graham Act, a sanctions law named after the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham. The law does not amount to an oil embargo but grants the president authority to impose additional tariffs of up to 100% on countries that remain the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas. The Kremlin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the signing does not contribute to the revival of US-Russia bilateral relations or to a peaceful settlement of the war against Ukraine.
Key points
- Trump signed the Graham Act on September 19, 2026; the law is named after the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham.
- Section 113 lets the president impose additional tariffs of up to 100% on countries that continue to buy Russian oil and are among the top five importers by physical volume over the previous 12 months.
- The tariff rate can range from just above zero to 100%, scaled depending on whether a country has taken 'significant steps' to reduce its purchases.
- The list of countries subject to tariffs must be recalculated every 180 days by the Office of the US Trade Representative together with the State Department and the Department of Energy.
- Countries discussed during the bill's drafting included China, India, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan; Turkey bought about 317,000 barrels per day of Russian oil in 2025.
- India imported about 1.87 million bpd of Russian oil in August after a record 2.79 million bpd in July; Chinese state company Sinopec increased purchases of Russian ESPO crude amid Middle East supply problems.
- The law is not an oil embargo and does not automatically impose maximum tariffs on Russia’s largest customers.
Why it matters
The Graham Act gives the US president a new, flexible tool to pressure countries that keep buying Russian energy without imposing a direct embargo on Russian oil. Tariff rates can be scaled from just above zero to 100% depending on how much a country reduces its Russian oil purchases, creating leverage rather than an automatic cut-off. Major buyers such as China, India, Turkey, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan could be affected, with consequences for global energy flows. The law also signals continued US legislative action against Russia and could reshape trade ties between Russia and its remaining large energy customers.
What happened
On September 19, 2026, US President Donald Trump signed the Graham Act, a sanctions law named after the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham. The law is directed at both Russia and Iran and is not an oil embargo. Its core mechanism is Section 113, which allows the president to impose additional tariffs of up to 100% on countries that remain the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas. The actual rate can range from just above zero to 100%, adjusted according to whether a country has taken significant steps to reduce its Russian energy purchases. The list of countries subject to tariffs is to be determined by the Office of the US Trade Representative, with the State Department and the Department of Energy, and must be recalculated every 180 days based on the top five importers of Russian crude by physical volume over the previous 12 months. Countries discussed during the bill's drafting included China, India, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan. India imported about 1.87 million barrels per day of Russian oil in August after a record 2.79 million bpd in July, while Turkey bought roughly 317,000 bpd of Russian oil in 2025. China's Sinopec increased purchases of Russian ESPO crude amid Middle East supply disruptions, with Russian oil reaching China via routes that do not depend on the Strait of Hormuz. Russia's roughly 30,000 bpd into Azerbaijan is used primarily as feedstock for the Baku refinery. The Kremlin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the signing does not contribute to the revival of US-Russia relations or to a peaceful settlement of the war against Ukraine, and claimed that sanctions have limited effect because Russia has adapted to over 30,000 separate measures.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
The Ukrainian-source coverage frames the law's significance not through the headline 100% tariff figure but through the broader leverage mechanism it hands the US president. It highlights expert analysis from Maksym Hardus, who argued that fully displacing 1.5 to 2 million barrels per day of Russian oil from India's balance would be extremely difficult. The framing treats the Graham Act as a flexible tool rather than as an automatic cut-off, with emphasis on how Russian oil reaches countries like China via routes that do not depend on the Strait of Hormuz.
Background
The Graham Act is named after the late Republican senator Lindsey Graham, who was one of its co-authors. Section 113 of the law underpins the tariff mechanism targeting the top five importers of Russian crude, and the list of countries subject to tariffs is to be reviewed every 180 days. China's Sinopec has increased purchases of Russian ESPO crude amid supply problems from the Middle East; Russian oil reaches China via routes that do not depend on the Strait of Hormuz. India's overall oil imports fell to 4.17 million barrels per day even as its Russian oil imports fluctuated between roughly 1.87 million bpd in August and a record 2.79 million bpd in July. Hungary and Slovakia historically received oil through the southern branch of the Druzhba pipeline; after supplies via Druzhba were halted in January, they were forced to switch to alternative maritime deliveries via Croatia's Omišalj and the Adria/JANAF pipeline. Global oil inventories have fallen by more than 500 million barrels since the start of the war, and Brent crude has exceeded $100 per barrel.