| WASHINGTON
U.S. Senator John McCain attends a news conference at the Benjamin Franklin Library in Mexico City, Mexico December 20, 2016. REUTERS/Henry Romero
Senior U.S. Republican and
Democratic senators will introduce legislation on Tuesday seeking to impose a
wide range of sanctions on Russia over its cyber activities and actions in
Syria and Ukraine.
The legislation is sponsored
by 10 senators - Republicans John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Marco Rubio, Ben
Sasse and Rob Portman and Democrats Ben Cardin, Robert Menendez, Jeanne
Shaheen, Amy Klobuchar and Richard Durbin.
The bipartisan support
increases the measure's chances of being passed by the Republican-led Congress.
A House of Representatives aide said Russia sanctions legislation also was
being prepared in that chamber.
It could set up a showdown
with the administration of Republican President-elect Donald Trump, who takes
office on Jan. 20 and has repeatedly praised Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The measure is being
introduced a day before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee holds its
confirmation hearing for Trump's nominee to be secretary of state, former Exxon
Mobil chief executive Rex Tillerson.
Many lawmakers from both
parties have raised questions about the decades Tillerson spent working with
Russia's government as an executive at the oil company, and his ties to Putin.
His hearing, set for Wednesday and Thursday, is expected to largely focus on
those issues.
According to a preliminary
summary seen by Reuters, the bill would impose visa bans and freeze the assets
of people "who engage in significant activities undermining the cyber
security of public or private infrastructure and democratic institutions"
or aids such activities.
It would impose sanctions on
those who engage with the Russian defence or intelligence sectors, which could
affect international companies doing business with Russia. It also puts into
law sanctions on Russia that President Barack Obama imposed via executive order
late last month.
U.S. lawmakers have long
called for a tougher response to Russian annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region
and intervention in the Syrian civil war on behalf of Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad.
Their impatience has increased since U.S. intelligence
agencies released a non-classified version of a report Friday saying Putin
ordered a campaign to try to sway the 2016 U.S. election in favour of Trump.
The bill also sets new sanctions over Ukraine and
Syria, including putting into law four executive orders from the Obama
administration sanctioning Russia over its actions in Crimea and eastern
Ukraine. Among other things, it would mandate sanctions on investments of $20
million or more in Russia's ability to develop its petroleum and natural gas
resources.
(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Andrew Hay
and Bill Trott)
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