137 Democratic Representatives in the U.S. House Call for Implementation of Sanctions Against Russia

More than two-thirds of Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have urged Donald Trump to implement sanctions against Russia as soon as possible. The "Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act," passed last summer, imposes sanctions on Russia for its interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Reuters reported on Monday, March 11, that at least 137 Democrats in the House signed the letter. They have asked the U.S. President to execute this approved law as soon as possible. They stated that Trump missed the legal deadline of January 29 to impose the sanctions outlined in the "Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act." Members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, have pressured the Trump administration to punish Russia for what Paul Ryan, the House Speaker, called a "malevolent and systematic attack" during the 2016 U.S. election campaign and to prevent potential foreign interference in the upcoming midterm elections in November. Russia denies any attempts to interfere in U.S. elections. Donald Trump has also repeatedly denied any collusion between his campaign and Russia. Investigations regarding this matter are ongoing by congressional committees and Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Democratic leaders in the House and Senate, as well as Democrats on congressional judiciary committees, separately released a letter on Monday asking Donald Trump to use any means necessary to extradite 13 Russian citizens that Mueller indicted last month. Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, stated last week that if violations of Russian laws by these citizens are proven, they could be tried in Russia. Actions to sanction Russia may occur soon. Dan Coats, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence, emphasized the importance of election security by the government during a Senate meeting last week and said the Treasury Department would announce its sanctions against Russia early this week. In this context, "the U.S. is reviewing" the imposition of new sanctions against Russia. The Kremlin stated that there is no document proving the Russian government's interference in U.S. elections. Putin's spokesperson accused the U.S. of attempting to influence Russian elections. The indictment of 13 Russian citizens is related to "interference in U.S. elections."