Russia dodges Trump Tariffs: Why and what It means for US sanctions on Moscow

Russia dodges Trump tariffs

US President Donald Trump has announced reciprocal tariffs against almost all the countries, a total of 182. However, Russia, Canada and Mexico are the surprise names among those which have not been named in the list. While several stringent tariffs are already in place for Canada and Mexico, Moscow faces pre-existing sanctions from America.

After President Donald Trump’s Rose Garden announcement, a White House official told news agency AP that Russia is "not on this list because sanctions from the Ukraine war have already rendered trade between the two countries as zero."

Despite the ongoing conflict, Ukraine will face a 10% retaliatory tariff. Many former Soviet republics were also included on Trump’s tariff list.

Belarus, Cuba, and North Korea—already under U.S. sanctions—were exempt, while Iran and Syria despite facing heavy embargo and sanctions saw additional tariffs of 10% and 40%, respectively. Let's look at existing sanctions on Russia and potential new tariffs US may put.

Tale of sanctions, tariffs, and strategic moves

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, former U.S. President Joe Biden imposed a broad sweep of sanctions aimed at isolating Russia from the global financial system.

• In 2022, the US froze $5 billion in Russian central bank assets and cut major Russian banks off from SWIFT, disrupting Moscow’s access to global financial systems.
• US banned Russian fossil fuel imports and restricted energy investments. Later, alongside the G7, it imposed a price cap on Russian crude. However, it continues to import Russian uranium, which made up 12% of its supply.
• US has also restricted exports of high-tech goods, including aircraft parts and semiconductors. These limits extend to foreign products using U.S. technology.
• In January 2024, the G7 and the U.S. sanctioned Russian diamonds, a major unsanctioned export. Moscow earned nearly $4 billion from diamonds in 2022, with G7 nations buying 70%.

US senators introduce bipartisan bill threatening new sanctions on Russia

After implementing extensive sanctions, the US is now warning Russia of further measures if it fails to cooperate in Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations.

A group of 50 US senators—25 Republicans and 25 Democrats—has introduced a bill to impose new sanctions on Russia if it refuses to engage in meaningful peace negotiations with Ukraine reports news agency Reuters.

Led by Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), the legislation would enforce primary and secondary sanctions on Russia and entities supporting its aggression. The bill also proposes 500% tariffs on imports from nations purchasing Russian oil, gas, uranium, and other products.

The move highlights rare bipartisanship in a deeply divided Congress and comes amid growing impatience from President Donald Trump over stalled peace efforts. Svitlana Romanko, executive director of Razom We Stand, told Newsweek that the measure could severely impact Russia’s war financing.

"Bipartisanship" refers to situations in which the Democratic and Republican parties collaborate to pass legislation.

Supporters of the bill claim it would easily pass both chambers if Republican leaders allow a vote. However, there is no clear timeline for when that might happen.

The US has also indicated that it could introduce secondary tariffs within a month if negotiations with Russia fail. Secondary tariffs mean that any country buying oil from Russia would be restricted from doing business in the United States.

These tariffs would primarily target countries like China, India, Turkey, and certain EU nations, pressuring them to choose between Russian energy and access to the U.S. market.

Secondary tariffs extend economic pressure by penalizing foreign entities that trade with a sanctioned nation. Trump recently took a similar approach with Venezuela, imposing a 25% tariff on US imports from nations purchasing its oil.

Since many affected countries are WTO members, the move could lead to challenges under global trade rules.