Kirill Dmitriev, the envoy for Russian President Vladimir Putin, declared the US suspension of the Graham Act an "important and truly historic moment" on Saturday. Trump signed the executive order on Friday, effectively halting sweeping sanctions and tariffs that targeted Russia’s energy revenues. The move struck just 48 hours before the penalties were scheduled to bite, marking a sharp reversal in US policy toward Moscow.
The waiver lands in the middle of a tense standoff with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, fueling speculation that Trump is increasingly siding with Putin. It has been nearly five years since Russia launched its full-scale offensive against Ukraine, a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions. Dmitriev argued the legislation would have caused "serious damage first and foremost to the US economy and global markets," framing the waiver as economic protection rather than just diplomatic appeasement.
While the Kremlin has not issued an official reaction, Putin appeared in military uniform on Friday, stating Moscow intends to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine. The Lindsey Graham Act, named after the late US senator who sponsored it, was designed to hit Russia’s energy and defence sectors directly, alongside sanctions on Putin and senior officials. The delay in the Kremlin’s response suggests they are savoring the diplomatic win, or waiting to see how the waiver translates into battlefield concessions.
The diplomatic shift coincides with intensified Russian aggression. On Saturday, Moscow carried out a large-scale overnight attack on Ukrainian infrastructure. Strikes hit the country’s largest steelworks in Kryvyi Rih, owned by ArcelorMittal, which had already suspended operations in September after previous ballistic missile strikes. Russian forces also targeted vessels in the port of Odesa, an electricity substation in Zhytomyr, and another steel plant in Zaporizhzhia. The defence ministry claimed a cargo vessel in the Black Sea was delivering military cargo to Odesa.
ArcelorMittal did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the latest damage to its Kryvyi Rih facility. The US State Department is expected to face pressure from European allies and domestic hawks to explain the rationale behind the waiver. The next critical moment will be whether the suspension of sanctions correlates with any de-escalation in Russian strikes or a shift in ceasefire negotiations, or if it simply emboldens Putin’s push for further territorial gains.