The US Senate has voted almost unanimously to slap new sanctions on Russia, putting President Donald Trump in a tough position by forcing him to take a hard line on Moscow or veto the legislation.

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Senate vote to force Trump's hand on Russia sanctions The bill targets Russia for its annexation of Crimea and alleged meddling in the US electi eS Senate has voted almost unanimously to slap new sanctions on Russia, putting President Donald Trump in a tough position by forcing him to take a hard line on Moscow or veto the legislation. The legislation all but dashes Mr Trump's hopes for warmer ties with Moscow as his administration is dogged by congressional and special counsel investigations into Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has repeatedly denied the conclusions of US intelligence agencies that Moscow interfered using cyber warfare methods, has threatened retaliation against the legislation. The Senate backed the bill, which also imposes sanctions on Iran and North Korea, by a margin of 98-2 with strong support from Mr Trump's fellow Republicans as well as Democrats. The bill, which includes a provision that allows Congress to stop any effort by Mr Trump to ease existing sanctions on Russia, will now be sent to the White House for the President to sign into law or veto.
It is the first major foreign policy legislation approved by Congress under Mr Trump, who has struggled to advance his domestic agenda despite Republicans controlling the Senate and House of Representatives. The strong bipartisan support for the bill was a sharp contrast to the bitter partisan rancor during debate over how to overhaul the US healthcare system. If Mr Trump chooses to veto it, the bill is expected to garner enough support in both chambers to override his veto and pass it into law. The sanctions measure has already passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 419-3. Republicans and Democrats have pushed for more sanctions partly as a response to the election allegations. Mr Trump denies any collusion between his campaign and Moscow.
publican Senator John McCain, a leading congressional voice calling for a firm line against Russia, said before the vote: "The United States of America needs to send a strong message to Vladimir Putin and any other aggressor that we will not tolerate attacks on our democracy." Mr Putin said Moscow would only decide on how to retaliate once it had seen the final text of the proposed law. The 184-page bill seeks to hit Mr Putin and the oligarchs close to him by targeting Russian corruption, human rights abusers, and crucial sectors of the Russian economy, including weapons sales and energy exports. The North Korea sanctions are intended to thwart Pyongyang's ambition for nuclear weapons by cutting off access to the cash the reclusive nation needs to follow through with its plans. The package also imposes mandatory penalties on people involved in Iran's ballistic missile programme and anyone who does business with them. The measure would apply terrorism sanctions to the country's Revolutionary Guards and enforce an arms embargo.