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A US Senate vote to advance tougher sanctions on Russia raises the risk of disruption to Russian crude supplies but is unlikely to immediately alter oil flows to India and China, according to Kpler analyst Sumit Ritolia. The US Senate on Friday passed a bipartisan Russia sanctions bill that would give President Donald Trump authority to impose tariffs of up to 100 per cent on imports from countries that are among the world's largest buyers of Russian oil and gas. The Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026 targets the five biggest purchasers of Russian energy and is aimed at cutting Moscow's revenues from oil and gas sales. The measure still needs to clear the US House of Representatives and faces further legislative and administrative steps before it could take effect. According to Ritolia, the measures still face further legislative and administrative hurdles, while their impact will depend largely on how aggressively the US administration implements them, including wheth
The Senate confirmed Todd Blanche as attorney general in a vote early Saturday morning, cementing President Donald Trump's former personal attorney's command of a Justice Department the Republican president has sought to bend to his will. The Republican-led Senate voted 50-49 to make Blanche the second confirmed attorney general since Trump returned to the White House last year with a stated desire to use the law enforcement agency to investigate his political enemies. While Blanche has already been leading the department in an acting capacity, his confirmation could free him to pursue the Trump administration's agenda even more aggressively. The vote followed a tumultuous confirmation fight that exposed deep concerns - from some Republicans as well as Democrats - about installing Trump's close ally atop a Justice Department that historically prided itself on its independence from the White House. In the end, Blanche was confirmed by the narrowest of margins, opposed by two ...
The US Senate voted overwhelmingly to approve a bill to punish Russia and key buyers of its petroleum products, such as China and India, claiming that such trade helps fuel the Ukraine war. The bill, renamed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, was approved by the Senate by an 86-11 vote. It allows President Donald Trump to impose 100 per cent tariffs on goods from countries that are top five importers of Russian oil and gas. At present China, India, Azerbaijan, Hungary and Slovakia are top five importers of oil and gas from Russia. In addition to Russia sanctions, the bill would extend till 2031 the expiration date of the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996, which penalises companies that invest in Iran's energy sector. The bipartisan bill was championed by Republican senator Lindsey Graham, who passed away on July 11, and Democrat Richard Blumenthal. After Graham's sudden death following a trip to Kyiv, leaders across the aisle moved with renewed vigour to ensu
The Senate has confirmed Jay Clayton to become head of the nation's intelligence agencies, putting a permanent director in place weeks after President Donald Trump sought to delay his nomination. Clayton, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York and a former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman, was confirmed 51-47 along party lines. Republicans had initially hoped to confirm Clayton in June, but Trump delayed his hearing in order to allow his temporary pick for the job, Bill Pulte, to take over for several weeks after former director Tulsi Gabbard resigned. Senators from both parties have expressed concerns about Pulte, a former housing regulator who had no intelligence experience. Pulte was in charge when Trump delivered a speech from the White House earlier this month doubling down on his false claims about the 2020 election, which he lost, and released classified documents that he said were relevant to his arguments. Pulte has also said he has presided over a
The Senate is expected to confirm Jay Clayton on Tuesday to become head of the nation's intelligence agencies, ensuring that a permanent director is in place as the midterm elections approach. Clayton is expected to be confirmed along party lines after a contentious hearing two weeks ago in which he repeatedly refused to say that former President Joe Biden won the 2020 election. Still, Democrats have said they have more confidence in Clayton than they do in Trump's temporary pick for the job, Bill Pulte, who has no known intelligence experience and investigated the president's perceived enemies in his previous post as a federal housing regulator. Senators from both parties have expressed concerns about Pulte, who took over on an interim basis last month after Tulsi Gabbard resigned. Pulte was in charge when Trump delivered a speech from the White House earlier this month doubling down on his false claims about the 2020 election, which he lost, and released classified documents that h
The House adopted a Republican-only USD 95 billion budget proposal Wednesday, a long-shot effort to fund the Iran war and other White House priorities over objections from Democrats and a few GOP holdouts in a final push before the midterm elections. House Republicans were divided over the plan, with conservatives wary because there are no offsetting budget cuts. But Speaker Mike Johnson plunged ahead, viewing the go-it-alone process as the best chance to usher President Donald Trump's priorities through the split Congress, despite scepticism in the Senate. The vote tally was 216-214, with all Democrats opposed. "Just bullets and bombs to finish the job," said Rep Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, the chairman of the Budget Committee. Democrats argued the money should be spent at home, particularly on efforts to lower costs for Americans. "Republicans plan to spend tens of billions of dollars on Trump's failed war in Iran," said Rep Pete Aguilar of California, chairman of the House Democr
A bill seeking to impose 100 per cent tariffs on five countries, including India and China, for buying Russian oil, while exempting European nations purchasing gas from Moscow, was introduced in the US Senate with the support of over 60 lawmakers. The bill, introduced on Thursday, was conceived by Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal and late Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. It is designed to deprive Russian President Vladimir Putin of revenue used to finance the war against Ukraine by imposing mandatory sanctions on Russia's political leadership, financial institutions, energy sector, and sanctions evasion networks. Blumenthal had said on Tuesday that the proposed legislation was aimed at imposing 100 per cent tariffs on five major purchasers of Russian oil -- China, India, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan. The text of the bill introduced in the Senate on Thursday imposes tariffs on imports from countries that are the world's top five purchasers of Russian crude oil or natural ga
Sen. Lindsey Graham's pursuit of a Russia sanctions bill has taken on renewed urgency after his death as colleagues look to pay tribute and build on the progress he made in gaining the White House's support for the measure. Supporters of Ukraine have been working for more than a year to pass a bill that would impose steep tariffs on goods from countries that continue to buy Russian oil, gas and other exports. They unveiled a revised measure Tuesday with the goal of depriving Russia of money it uses to fund its war against Ukraine. Some lawmakers worried the original bill was too broad and could harm the economies of some of the US' strongest allies that have also helped Ukraine. The White House wanted to ensure the president had adequate flexibility to waive sanctions when it is the national interest to do so. The revised bill attempts to address both concerns. The final bill more narrowly applies the tariffs to the world's top five purchasers of Russia oil or natural gas, according
Sen Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump's closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive US foreign policy, died after a rupture in his aorta, according to a preliminary medical examiner's finding shared by his office. The rupture was related to the hardening of Graham's arteries. An official cause of death will be disclosed after toxicological and microscopic testing. Graham, a prominent South Carolina Republican and former Air Force lawyer who served in Congress for more than three decades, had turned 71 years old just two days before dying on Saturday night. His office had originally said he had suffered from a "brief and sudden illness." Trump, who talked to Graham frequently, said he was "like a member of the family. It's very tough." He said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Graham had called him on Saturday night after returning from a trip to Ukraine and "sounded a little bit tired, but perfect." The president ordered that flags ..
The Senate for the first time approved a war powers resolution Tuesday seeking to block US military action against Iran, as lawmakers warily watch President Donald Trump's efforts to resolve a conflict that the administration launched on its own and now needs Congress to fund. It was the 10th time the Senate has tried to stop the war, and the outcome, on a vote of 50-48, was a stunning turnaround from past efforts. While the resolution is largely symbolic, and does not fully carry the force of law, it reflects the growing concerns from a number of Republican lawmakers in both the House and Senate over both the war and the deal Trump struck with Iran to end it. The House approved the resolution earlier this month. "Time after time, the vast majority of Senate Republicans sided with Trump and his war instead of the American people," said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. Schumer said Americans have paid the price for "Trump's historic blunder in Iran. It'll go down in the histor
Two Republican senators flagged histories of Qatar and Pakistan of "harbouring terrorists" against the backdrop of US Vice President J D Vance's remarks professing "love" for Islamabad. "It should be clear to everybody by now who our friends really are. Qatar and Pakistan have long histories of harbouring terrorists, and right now they seem far more invested in propping up Iran's decades-long terror campaign than achieving a meaningful peace," Senator Rick Scott said in a post on X on Monday. The Florida senator's remarks came against the backdrop of Vance's "we love Pakistan" remark in Switzerland, where he, along with leaders from Pakistan and Qatar, were negotiating technical details of a peace deal with Iran. "There is still room for a workable agreement that benefits everyone. HOWEVER, what everybody needs to get through their heads here is that there is ZERO chance Iran comes out of this able to build a nuclear weapon," Scott said. Senator Tim Sheehy from Montana, in an ...
The Senate tried and failed again Tuesday to advance a war powers resolution that would halt the US military action against Iran, in what has become an almost weekly effort to rein in President Donald Trump as the administration floats a new plan to bring an end to the nearly four-month long war. Senators of both parties have have been sceptical of the Trump administration's emerging Iran deal and frustrated by the White House's refusal to share details. They are expecting a briefing from the administration, but nothing has been scheduled before Friday's planned deadline for the two sides to sign the agreement. The vote was 47-48, with four Republicans joining most Democrats in supporting the war powers resolution. That fell short of the majority needed to advance it. "Join me in putting a check on this president's lawless warmongering," said Senator Raphael Warnock, who proposed the resolution, in a speech before the voting. "The time is always right to do what's right," he said.
Bill Gates said Wednesday that he made a "grave error in judgment" by ever meeting with Jeffrey Epstein as the Microsoft co-founder faced questions behind closed doors from lawmakers about his relationship with the disgraced financier. In an opening statement provided to The Associated Press, Gates said he "should never have met with Epstein in the first place," but that he "never witnessed nor had any indication that Epstein was engaged in ongoing criminal conduct". The tech billionaire became the latest powerful figure linked to Epstein to testify before the House Oversight Committee. As Gates arrived at the Capitol, he noted that he was there voluntarily and said he hoped his testimony would be useful. "I hope my testimony is helpful to the work, the important work, of the committee, to find justice for the victims," he said. The committee chairman, Republican US Rep James Comer, formally requested that Gates testify after he appeared multiple times in a trove of documents relea
US Senator John Cornyn, the co-chair of the Senate India Caucus, has greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for becoming the longest-serving elected prime minister and said his tenure has been "nothing short of transformational". On Wednesday, Narendra Modi became India's longest-serving prime minister, with an unbroken tenure of 4,399 days in office, surpassing the record of first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. "Congratulations to Prime Minister @narendramodi on becoming India's longest-serving elected Prime Minister - 4,399 days of leadership earned through the trust of 1.4 billion people across three democratic mandates," Cornyn, the Republican Senator from Texas, said in a post on X. "From lifting 250 million out of poverty to making India the world's fastest-growing major economy, PM Modi's tenure has been nothing short of transformational. The US-India partnership has never been stronger," Cornyn said. Nehru, who was first elected to the post in 1952, took the oath of office