In memory of Sen. Lindsey Graham, 1955-2026.

In memory of Sen. Lindsey Graham, 1955-2026.

When Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal first introduced this bill - it was on April 1, 2025 - there was much more hope for America.

Trump did not yet seem incapable of putting at least some pressure on Putin. Common sense in U.S. foreign policy did not yet seem to have completely sunk into oblivion.

A year and a half after this bill was first published, the situation is as follows:

▪️During this time, the U.S. has not provided Ukraine with a single penny of aid. What was delivered was sold with European money. The volumes sold are not even close to comparable with the Biden era (even though Biden did not always provide enough and did not always do it on time).

▪️The latest (and the only under Trump) sanctions against Russia were imposed 11 months ago, BUT EVEN THOSE were twice suspended for a month so that Russia could sell off tanker oil and ease the shortage of black gold on the global market caused by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Trump did not even introduce new sanctions against Russia's shadow fleet.

▪️Ukraine is still holding on, despite the absence of direct American aid and, possibly, the most Kremlin-loyal American president in history, and the situation at the front for the Armed Forces of Ukraine is now better than in any month of 2025.

And now Trump has finally signed this law.

Does this law restore hope in America? No, because everything else Trump is doing in foreign policy has nothing to do with common sense.

Does this law put critical pressure on Russia? No, and despite Trump's signature, he can still refrain from putting its provisions into effect for 30 days (or, more precisely, cancel them).

And he does not even need any special pretext for that - everyone has long known about his irrational love for Putin.

So what is the point?

A safeguard. The law kills any realistic prospect of long-term economic cooperation between Russia and the United States until Russia changes.

American business will not go into Russia with sanctions like these hanging over it like a sword of Damocles.

Witkoff and Dmitriev's trillion-dollar grand schemes, and all those tunnels to Alaska, can go screw themselves now.

Exxon can stop getting its hopes up now about returning to "Sakhalin-1," where it had a 30% stake before the full-scale invasion.

And no, this does not mean Witkoff will no longer fly to Moscow, or that Trump Jr. will not accept a gift from Umar Kremlev.

It means that at the state level there will be no rapprochement between the United States and Russia, no matter how much Trump covers the White House with photos of himself with Putin.

Old Lindsey took care of that. Congress voted for it. And Trump signed off on it.