Senators near deal on Russia sanctions to deter Ukraine invasion

Senators negotiating a sanctions package intended to deter a Russian invasion of Ukraine said they’re optimistic they’ll resolve lingering disagreements and strike a deal this week.

“We’re hopefully finalizing a couple of elements that we have to get agreement on and we can move forward,” Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, said Monday night.

Senator Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat and member of the committee, said the goal was to have something finalized “in the next day or so” as the two parties hash out whether to levy “pre-invasion sanctions” that would hit Russia before President Vladimir Putin orders any actual incursion into Ukraine.

Murphy said he agreed with President Joe Biden’s position that sanctions should be contingent upon an invasion so they could serve as a deterrent. But the senator said he understood Republicans’ desire to sanction Russia now as it flexes its muscles along the Ukrainian border. Putin has said he has no plans to invade.

“I think there’s a way to split the baby and rightly acknowledge that Putin has already crossed a significant line that deserves some consequence,” Murphy said. “This is all about getting a bipartisan deal.” 

Senator Jim Risch of Idaho, the top Republican on Foreign Relations, said he’s optimistic there will soon be a deal. 

“We report progress,” he said Monday night. 

Senator Ben Cardin, a Maryland Democrat, suggested that Congress signal that “Mr. Putin’s already eligible for additional sanctions, why don’t we impose some of them?” 

Cardin said the harshest measures would be held in reserve in the event of an invasion, and that the U.S. should consider removing Russia from the Swift financial system if an invasion were to occur.

“That’s a pretty heavy hand,” Cardin added. “I think we make it clear that if there is an incursion into Ukraine that’s certainly on the table.”

Cutting off Russian lenders from Swift is widely thought to be unlikely, however, because of the collateral damage it could unleash on Europe.

Among the other unresolved issues in the ongoing negotiations is “how we deal with” Nord Stream 2, a natural gas pipeline built under the Baltic Sea from Russia to the German coast.

The pipeline, which was completed in September, could help Europe secure a relatively low-cost supply of gas at a time when the continent’s own producers are reducing output. 

Lawmakers will be briefed this week by Biden administration officials, including military leaders, on the standoff over Ukraine, according to people familiar with the matter. Separate classified briefings are planned on Thursday for the full Senate, followed by the full House of Representatives.