“President Trump has made his commitment to ending this war and bringing peace to Ukraine very clear. This bill will help him do that.”
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WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor:
Thune’s remarks below (as delivered):
“Mr. President, yesterday we said goodbye to our friend and colleague, Lindsey Graham.
“But though we said farewell, Lindsey’s work continues.
“Last night, we began consideration of the bill to which he devoted so much of his time and energy over the last year.
“He had worked on it with world leaders and members of both parties here in Congress.
“And he was working on it on the day he died.
“That bill is now known as the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act.
“And it will give the president important tools to hopefully end the war between Russia and Ukraine and bring peace where there has been war for too long.
“Mr. President, Russia invaded Ukraine four and a half years ago.
“Back then, many believed Ukraine would fall in less than a week.
“But Ukraine has denied the Russians the quick victory that they had expected.
“Mr. President, this war continues because Vladimir Putin wants it to continue.
“Over the course of the war, Russia has suffered some 1.4 million casualties.
“By one estimate, Russian casualties are now at 30,000 per month.
“Ukraine has slowed Russia’s advance.
“They have gone on the offensive within Russia’s borders.
“And with the war reportedly taking up a significant share of Russia’s budget, Putin is seeking to quash the opposition to it in his own country.
“But the war continues, as I said, because Putin wants it to continue.
“And because he is able to keep it going.
“Mr. President, Russia funds its war effort in no small part through oil and gas sales facilitated by its so-called ‘shadow fleet’ of ships flying under false flags.
“What the Graham Russia sanctions bill does is go after that source of funding.
“It gives the president authority to levy tariffs of up to 100 percent against the largest purchasers of Russian energy, of which China is the largest.
“You might recall that before the Russian invasion in 2022, the leaders of China and Russia declared a ‘no limits’ partnership between their two countries.
“Today, that partnership is most evident in China’s financing of the war by purchasing Russian oil and gas.
“Mr. President, this bill doesn’t stop with the purchasers … of Russian energy, however.
“It also sanctions the government officials, private individuals, and banks and other enterprises that facilitate the sale of Russian gas and oil.
“In short, it takes direct aim at a key source of funding for Russia’s war effort – because this war will not end until Putin is forced to come to the negotiating table in a real way.
“Mr. President, this bill is about denying Putin the ability to continue to prolong this war.
“President Trump has made his commitment to ending this war and bringing peace to Ukraine very clear.
“This bill will help him do that.
“Mr. President, they say you can know a man by the enemies that he’s made.
“Lindsey Graham didn’t have many fans in the Kremlin, nor was he liked in Tehran or Beijing for that matter.
“I don’t think this bill has many supporters in those places either, Mr. President.
“This is a bill that aims to shut off a key source of strength for Russia’s war effort.
“It targets China’s source of cheap energy.
“And it ensures the president can continue putting maximum economic pressure on Iran, as well, by extending for another five years the legislation that underpins many of the sanctions that are in place against the Iranian regime.
“Mr. President, we may have said farewell to Lindsey yesterday, but his work goes on.
“He believed in America, and he saw its promise in the hopes of the men and women around the world who want their own democracy and freedom in their homelands.
“There was no greater friend to freedom-loving people than Lindsey Graham.
“And this bill is a part of that legacy – a legacy that will echo for many years to come.”