U.S. President Donald Trump has explained the exemption granted to Russia from the new economic sanctions imposed under the Lindsey O. Graham law.
The Lindsey O. Graham Act, which would empower Trump to impose new sanctions on Russia and levy a 100 percent tariff on goods from countries that import crude oil and other products from that country, was recently passed in the U.S. Congress. Within days of the law’s passage, Trump spoke with Russian President Putin and approved large-scale diesel imports to the United States from that country. In addition, Trump issued an order exempting Russia from the economic sanctions imposed under the new law. Similarly, Trump also put on hold the imposition of a 100 percent tariff on goods from five countries, including India and China, that import large quantities of crude oil from Russia.
Trump was asked about this while speaking to reporters in Washington. In response, he said, “My decision to exempt Russia from the sanctions was the right one. Many people do not know what that means. We will explain it. You will find out. This is good for America. Good for the world too. Because we are on the global stage today,” he said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also explained the exemption granted to Russia and other countries from sanctions and the 100 percent tariff. Speaking on this, he said, “I think the president has suspended the sanctions and tariffs for 60 days in order to study what impact sanctions and tariffs would have on the American economy and the global economy. India has also been exempted from the tariff. India is an important partner country. It is a friendly nation of the United States. The president needs time to make a decision taking all this into account,” he said.
Trump’s decision was criticized by Darlene Graham, a Republican senator and the brother of Lindsey Graham. He said, “In my view, pressure should have been applied to Russia to bring the war to an end and reduce gas prices. That is because I have no trust in Russia or in Russian President Putin,” he said.
Another Republican senator, Thom Tillis, criticized Trump for making an irresponsible decision. He also said, “If Trump really wanted to reduce gas prices, he should resolve the Iran war. Because Iran is the reason for the rise in crude oil and gas prices,” he said.
Democratic Party Senator Elizabeth Warren said, “Trump has paved the way for Putin’s war of aggression (referring to the war with Ukraine),” and criticized him.