Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., issued a statement Jan. 7 saying that he hopes there will be a vote on the Russia sanctions bill (see 2512190029 and 2601050050) "as early as next week."
Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the lead Republican in the Senate pushing for higher tariffs on countries that buy Russian oil, talked up his bill to reporters on Air Force One as he and the president flew back from Palm Beach, Florida. President Donald Trump said, "We talk a lot about legislation, and we have great legislation coming, you want to tell them?"
Companies in the U.S. and the EU are increasingly being asked by Chinese business partners to certify that they’re not exporting rare earths in violation of Chinese export restrictions, including in some cases through post-shipment audits, lawyers said.
A bipartisan bill to increase financial pressure on Russia to stop its aggression in Ukraine no longer gives the president the authority to hike tariffs on countries like Turkey, China and Hungary that purchase Russian oil and gas. The original approach was to give the president the ability to impose tariffs as high as 500% on those countries' exports; he has hiked tariffs on Indian goods by 25 percentage points over the issue.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said he expects the U.S. will announce more trade deals, and release text about previously announced framework deals "in the coming weeks."
House Foreign Affairs Committee ranking member Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., said Dec. 4 that he is seeking several changes to a Russia sanctions and tariffs bill that lawmakers are trying to get through Congress this month.
The lead sponsor in the House on a Russia sanctions and secondary sanctions bill said that negotiations are still ongoing between the two chambers on the final language of the bill.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., said Nov. 21 that he plans to file a discharge petition to force a House vote on a bill to impose additional sanctions on Russia and new tariffs on countries that buy its oil and gas.
As a Russia sanctions bill appears to have more momentum (see 2511170041), Democratic senators declined to say what tariff levels would be effective or appropriate if it becomes law.