The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
– Veto likely not effective –
In mid-June, the Senate voted 98-2 in favor of tough sanctions on Moscow and Tehran, but the text stalled in the House.
With the North Korea sanctions now included, the new measure would need to be passed by the Senate before heading to the White House, likely before summer break begins in mid-August.
Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer said he wants the new measure passed and sent to Trump’s desk “without delay.”
US lawmakers, including Republican leaders, have remained wary of the intentions of the billionaire businessman-turned-president — who has called for better relations with Moscow — regarding a relaxation of pressure on Putin.
But even if Trump were to veto the legislation, Congress would likely be able to overcome such a blockage with a two-thirds majority in each chamber.
– Russia calls sanctions ‘counterproductive’ –
The Kremlin warned that fresh sanctions on Russia would adversely affect both sides.
“We consider such a continuation of the rhetoric of sanctions counter-productive and harmful to the interests of both countries,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.
From Paris to Berlin, the sanctions bill was seen as a unilateral action by Washington that disrupts a carefully crafted order.
To date, sanctions against Moscow have been coordinated on both sides of the Atlantic, to maintain a united front.
European Union member states were due to meet Wednesday and discuss the issue — and a possible response.
Several European nations, including Germany, are livid because the new law would allow punishing companies working on pipelines from Russia, for example by limiting their access to US banks.
The provision could theoretically pave the way for sanctions against European partners in Nord Stream 2, a project to build a pipeline carrying Russian gas across the Baltic that could boost supplies to Germany from 2019.
To date, Washington and Brussels had agreed that sanctions would not affect Europe’s gas supply.
In an apparent concession, the House modified a provision so the bill only targets pipelines originating in Russia, sparing those that merely pass through, such as the Caspian pipeline that carries oil from Kazakhstan to Europe.
