Expanded Russia sanctions gain bipartisan support in US Senate

WASHINGTON: Several US senators struck a bipartisan deal to expand existing sanctions against Russia and let Congress review any move by president Donald Trump to lift existing penalties, a sign of congressional frustration amid probes of interference in the 2016 election.

Under the agreement, new sanctions could be levied on entities engaging in “malicious cyber activity,” according to a summary released on Monday by four senators, including Banking chairman Mike Crapo and Foreign Relations chairman Bob Corker, as well as the ranking Democrats on the those panels, Sherrod Brown and Ben Cardin.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the Senate will hold a vote to add the amendment to an Iran sanctions bill, S. 722, being debated this week.

“By codifying existing sanctions and requiring congressional review of any decision to weaken or lift them, we are ensuring that the United States continues to punish Russian President Vladimir Putin “for his reckless and destabilising actions,” Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, said in a statement.

“These additional sanctions will also send a powerful and bipartisan statement to Russia and any other country who might try to interfere in our elections that they will be punished.”

The summary of the amendment said it would put into law penalties that were imposed by the Obama administration on some Russian energy projects. It would also allow new sanctions on sectors of the Russian economy, including mining, metal, shipping and railways. Text of the amendment wasn’t immediately released but the statement from the four senators cited Russia’s meddling with last year’s election, as well as its actions in Ukraine and Syria.

The deal came less than 24 hours before Attorney General Jeff Sessions was slated to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee about his meetings with Russian envoys during the campaign.

It’s the latest sign that some lawmakers intend to push back on Trump’s efforts to improve relations with Moscow.

US intelligence agencies have concluded that Putin ordered a campaign to undermine faith in the democratic process and the candidacy of Trump’s opponent, Hillary Clinton. Congressional committees and the FBI are investigating the Russian interference and whether there was any collusion with Trump’s campaign.