Senate unanimously votes to downgrade Russia's trade status, ban Russian oil and gas

The Senate on Thursday voted unanimously to both strip Russia of its "most favored nation" trade status and ban the import of Russian oil and gas, CNBC reports.

The separate votes both came in at 100-0.

The downgrade in Russia's "most favored nation" trade status will now allow the U.S. to impose damaging new tariffs punishing Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, CNBC writes.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

"Formally revoking normal trade relations with Russia is precisely the right thing for the Senate to do, because it will land another huge blow to Putin's economy," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday. "It's a key part of any strategy for holding Putin accountable for his savage attacks on innocent civilians."

Following the trade status vote, the Senate also passed a separate bill banning the import of Russian oil, gas, coal, and other energy products, CNBC adds. President Biden had already signed an executive order on the matter, but the Senate's bill codifies that previous order into law.

Both the oil and gas ban and trade status bills will now move to the House, where they are expected to soon receive a vote and succeed, CNBC reports. Though similar legislation had already passed the House last month, the Senate made significant changes to both bills, meaning the altered package must clear the lower chamber once again before heading to Biden's desk, The Hill notes.