In a sharply worded report released on Aug. 5, 2025, Democratic staff from two key Senate committees accused the Trump administration of undermining US sanctions policy toward Russia and weakening efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The report, titled “Dropping the Baton: How America is Failing to Use Russia Sanctions and Export Controls to Help Achieve a Just Peace in Ukraine,” was authored by the minority staff of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. It was prepared for Senators Elizabeth Warren and Jeanne Shaheen, the ranking members of those respective committees.
The 40-page document argued that the administration had failed to use its full authority to impose and enforce sanctions against Russia, despite bipartisan support and clear legal mandates. “The American people should understand the extent of the President’s reluctance to use his broad authorities to help end Russia’s war,” the report stated.
It described a pattern of missed deadlines, weak enforcement, and political interference that, according to the authors, had allowed Russia to stabilize its war economy and continue its aggression in Ukraine.
The report acknowledged that sanctions imposed between 2022 and early 2025 had achieved tangible results. Russia’s access to foreign technology was severely restricted, oil revenues declined, and the ruble came under sustained pressure. “Regular, frequent sanctions and export control actions had kept the costs to Russia growing while it continued its war of choice,” the authors wrote.
Yet, after President Trump took office in January 2025, the momentum stalled. The report cited the administration’s failure to respond to a deadly Russian missile strike in Ukraine on April 25, despite public promises of retaliation. A widely circulated social media post from Trump reading “Vladimir, STOP!” was never followed by concrete action.
“Six months later, our allies and adversaries are waiting to see whether President Trump will follow through.” – report
According to the report, the administration missed multiple statutory deadlines to impose new sanctions, including those triggered by documented human rights abuses and violations of arms control agreements. Enforcement of existing sanctions was described as lax, with Russian entities continuing to access US-origin technologies through intermediaries in Central Asia and the Middle East. The report also criticized the administration for failing to maintain close coordination with European allies, resulting in fragmented enforcement and exploitable loopholes. Internal communications reviewed by committee staff revealed that senior officials had delayed sanctions decisions due to concerns about “escalating tensions” with Moscow, even as intelligence assessments warned of continued Russian aggression.
“Six months later, our allies and adversaries are waiting to see whether President Trump will follow through,” the report warned. It emphasized that the failure to act decisively had emboldened Russia and weakened US credibility. Intelligence cited in the report showed increased Russian military spending and renewed efforts to acquire Western semiconductors through shell companies. “Russia’s war economy is adapting — not collapsing,” the authors cautioned.
The consequences were already visible on the battlefield. Ukrainian forces had lost ground in Donetsk and Kherson, and the lack of new sanctions had deprived Kyiv of critical leverage. Senator Shaheen issued a statement the same day, saying, “Yet again, President Trump has apparently let President Putin walk across one of his red lines with zero consequences.”
She pledged to advance bipartisan legislation to impose secondary sanctions on Russian enablers and expand military aid to Ukraine. Senator Warren echoed the sentiment, calling the administration’s approach “a dangerous abdication of responsibility.”
The report concluded with a call for immediate action. It urged the administration to impose sanctions under existing authorities, expand export controls targeting dual-use technologies, and improve coordination with G7 partners. It also recommended passage of the Graham-Blumenthal bill, which would mandate automatic sanctions for future Russian violations. “Failing to act decisively now will only prolong the war and increase the human cost,” the report concluded.
Since the report’s release, pressure has mounted. A senior US official confirmed that new secondary sanctions targeting Russia’s trading partners were expected to go into effect by Friday, following a meeting between Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and President Putin in Moscow. However, critics remain skeptical. “I don’t know that sanctions bother [Putin],” Trump said in a recent interview. “But we’re going to do it.”
Whether these measures will reflect the urgency outlined in the report remains to be seen.
