US House Approves Russia, Iran, North Korea Sanctions

The US House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to slap new sanctions on Russia and to compel President Donald Trump to obtain politicians’ permission before easing any sanctions on Moscow. The legislation moves to the Senate, but it’s unclear when the Senate will vote on the measure, which includes new sanctions against Russia, Iran and North Korea. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker indicated Monday he may want to make some tweaks to the bill, which was negotiated between the House and Senate after the initial version he drafted sailed through on a 98-2 vote. “This is a strong, bipartisan bill that will increase the United States’ economic and political leverage,” Rep. Ed Royce, who heads the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told reporters Tuesday. Meanwhile the bill had raised concerns in the European Union, where US allies depend on supplies of Russian gas but House members said the bill was tweaked to try to alleviate the worries of Europeans and the energy sector.