President Donald Trump signed a sweeping Russia sanctions bill into law on Saturday, opening a new front in the effort to squeeze Moscow's war economy while Russian voters cast ballots in a parliamentary election.
What the law does
The legislation is named for Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a long-time advocate of harder measures against Moscow. It adds sanctions aimed at Russian oil revenue and the trading networks that help the country sell crude. The measure moved through Congress with support from both parties and, according to reports, over reservations from parts of the administration. Ukraine and Russia both responded quickly, a sign of how closely the Kremlin watches any change in how much money its energy exports can earn.
Voting while under attack
The law landed on the second day of voting for all 450 seats in Russia's State Duma, the first parliamentary election since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Moscow's electronic voting system came under what the head of the central election commission, Ella Pamfilova, called a very powerful, non-stop cyberattack overnight. She said the system was still working normally and did not say who was responsible. Turnout stood at 32.58% by early afternoon local time, state media reported, citing commission data.
Most anti-war candidates were excluded before voting began, after the Supreme Court ruled that the liberal Yabloko party had breached electoral rules, which it denies. President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of trying to hinder the vote. Kyiv has called the election a farce and kept up drone strikes during it; Moscow's mayor said more than 350 Ukrainian drones targeted the capital on Friday.
What comes next
United Russia is widely expected to keep its dominance, and the result will be read as a signal of public mood after four years of war. For Washington, the sanctions law sets up a practical test: whether added pressure changes Russian behaviour, or mainly pushes trade through third countries that are happy to take the business.