Stubb on Graham-Blumenthal sanctions: Tide of war is turning in Ukraine’s favor
The President of Finland, Alexander Stubb, emphasised that for some time now the tide of the war has been turning in Ukraine’s favour.
Stubb wrote about this on the social media platform X, according to Censor.NET.
"The sanctions package proposed by Senators Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal is making headway in the US Senate with strong cross-party support, passing by 86 votes to 12. It was an honour to take part in discussions with President Zelenskyy and the senators. We exchanged views on the current situation in Ukraine and Russia. The tide of the war has been turning in Ukraine’s favour for some time now. This package of sanctions, together with the EU’s 21st package of sanctions, will reinforce this trend. Peace through strength," the statement reads.
He also emphasised the importance of maintaining pressure on Russia, "whilst continuing to work towards a ceasefire and a just and lasting peace".
The Graham-Blumenthal Bill
The Graham-Blumenthal Bill (Sanctioning Russia Act) is a cross-party initiative by US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, aimed at significantly increasing economic pressure on Russia and its trading partners. Following Graham’s death, his co-authors are continuing to push the bill forward.
Key provisions of the draft bill:
- the imposition of sanctions against the Russian Federation’s leadership, state-owned banks, the energy sector and the so-called ‘shadow fleet’;
- granting the US President the power to impose secondary tariffs of up to 100 per cent on countries that continue to purchase significant volumes of Russian oil, gas and other energy resources. The initial version referred to 500 per cent, but following negotiations, the document was amended to a maximum of 100 per cent;
- Provision is made for the President to temporarily defer the application of certain sanctions or duties if this is in the national interest of the United States.
