So far, Trump has shied away from putting pressure on China over energy imports from Russia. He temporarily imposed a 25 percent tariff on goods from India because of purchases of Russian oil.
At the same time, there should be exceptions for countries whose imports accounted for less than 15 percent of Russian natural gas exports in a twelve-month period – and which take measures to reduce these purchases. “Our European allies are not affected here,” emphasized Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal in mid-July.
Zelenskyj thanks Senate – MPs criticize law
The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the US Senate. Any signal in support of ending the war as quickly as possible is important, he wrote on Platform X. “Real, strong pressure from the USA and sanctions against Russia are what will help the most.” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha called the law “striking evidence of the United States’ global leadership.” There was initially no official reaction from Russia.
Meanwhile, some Democrats, such as House Representatives Gregory Meeks and Don Beyer, criticized that the law in its current form would give Trump too far-reaching customs powers. This is another reason why it is unclear how the vote in the second chamber of parliament will turn out. The majority there is extremely narrow, and the important midterm elections in November make political compromises difficult.
The agreement on the final text coincided last week with Zelensky’s visit to Washington and funeral services for Graham. In the debate before the vote, Republican Senator Katie Britt said: “Today we stand together to show that we will cut off Putin’s money.” Her Democratic colleague Blumenthal described the signal to Russia as follows: “Today we say to Vladimir Putin: You will not conquer Ukraine.”
More deaths in air strikes on Ukraine
However, Russia still appears to be far from scaling back its war of aggression. According to authorities, at least three people were killed and several injured in new air strikes on the Ukrainian capital Kiev and its surroundings overnight. Ukrainian media reported a series of explosions, with the eastern suburb of Brovary particularly badly hit.
Just on Wednesday night, eight people were killed by Russian rocket fire at a train station in Brovary. This already showed how overwhelmed the defenders are with the series of bullets flying in: According to the Ukrainian air force The Russian army deployed dozens of ballistic missiles of various types, not a single one of which could be intercepted.
Because the Ukrainians lack missile defense ammunition after four and a half years of war, Russia has increased its attacks with ballistic missiles. They are particularly difficult to intercept due to their high speed. The Patriot systems are considered the most effective defense, but the Ukrainian army is running out of interceptor missiles. One reason for this: the US and Israel’s war against the Iran has further reduced global ammunition stocks. And so fears are growing in Kiev that unhindered rocket attacks could severely damage the country’s infrastructure and bring an even harsher winter to the suffering Ukrainians.
