The U.S. Senate voted 86-11 to pass a major sanctions package against Russia, aiming to cut oil and gas revenues to pressure Putin to end the war in Ukraine.
On 7 Aug 2026 GMT+7, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly approved the major sanctions bill against Russia with an 86-11 vote. The bill targets countries still buying oil, gas, and exports from Russia to block revenue that President Vladimir Putin's government uses to support the war in Ukraine.
This bill was the work of Senator Lindsey Graham, who had pushed it for a year before his sudden death in July. After Graham's funeral, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to the U.S. Capitol to meet both Democratic and Republican senators and observed the bill's initial vote from the gallery.
Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat who helped promote the bill, said the U.S. wants to signal to Ukrainians that they are not fighting alone and that Putin cannot take over Ukraine. However, some Democrats and Republicans expressed concern that granting the president broad authority to impose import tariffs could raise prices and living costs for Americans.
This bill represents the most significant measure of President Donald Trump's second term effort to change the prolonged Ukraine war situation, now over four years. Trump has expressed support for the sanctions, increasing pressure on the House of Representatives to consider the bill and send it to the president for signing into law.