Trump Signs Russia-Iran Sanctions Law, Authorizing Tariffs of Up to 100%
US President Donald Trump signed into law a Russia sanctions bill on Friday, September 18. The law grants authority to expand sanctions, impose customs duties and various prohibitions against Russia, while renewing existing sanctions on Iran. The law, named the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, imposes sanctions on Russian officials, Russian banks and vessels used to transport energy from Russia, and gives Trump the authority to levy tariffs of up to 100% on goods from the five countries that import the most oil or natural gas from Russia. It also extends the Iran Sanctions Act for another five years to maintain sanctions targeting Iran's energy and weapons sectors. The US House of Representatives passed the bill on Wednesday, September 16, after the Senate approved it on August 7. The law is a major achievement carrying on the legacy of Lindsey Graham, the former senator who championed the bill and died in July after a sudden illness. However, the bill faced more division in the House than in the Senate, with three Democratic members of the House saying in a joint statement recently that the law may do more harm than good because it greatly increases Trump's power to set tariffs but does not compel him to impose sanctions on Russia.
▲impact 4
Kobsak says US, Denmark and Greenland reach permanent security agreement
The United States, Denmark and Greenland have reached a landmark agreement that opens the way for the US to have a long-term security role in Greenland. Kobsak Pootrakool, Senior Executive Vice President of Bangkok Bank, or BBL, posted on Facebook under the name Kobsak Pootrakool, stating that Denmark and Greenland have granted the US the rights to use Greenland as the US wants, to serve as a key strategic point for building the Golden Dome and for controlling shipping through the emerging Arctic route. President Trump announced that this agreement gives the US permanent control over security and all other necessary matters in Greenland, at no cost to the US, and that countries hostile to the US will not be able to establish military bases, station troops, or invest in sensitive businesses in Greenland without explicit written approval from the US. Kobsak stated that this agreement is eternal, with no end date, and that the US will immediately begin the process of establishing a large military force in suitable areas of Greenland. He also viewed this as significant progress within the framework of the Donroe Doctrine, under which the US seeks to control key points around its neighborhood in North and South America, following Panama, Venezuela, Colombia and Greenland, with Cuba and Brazil remaining, awaiting the October 4 election.
▲impact 4
Lockheed Martin Set for First Saudi F-35 Sale, Germany F-35A Rollout
Lockheed Martin is set to benefit from a US government plan to sell up to 48 F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia, following a notification to Congress in 2026, a package that would mark the first sale of F-35 aircraft to the kingdom. The company also marked the rollout of Germany's first F-35A in 2026, a key step in Berlin's transition to the aircraft. The Saudi notification for up to 48 F-35s would, if approved and executed, add a new Gulf customer to a platform already adopted by 20 nations and operating from 42 bases worldwide, extending an existing global footprint rather than creating a new product line. The next concrete waypoint is formal progression of the Saudi sale through Congress after the 2026 notification, which would turn a proposed package into a contracted backlog line, while for Germany investors can track the first eight F-35 deliveries to Ebbing Air National Guard Base for pilot training beginning this fall. Lockheed Martin, a US aerospace and defense group with a market cap of about $124.2b, designs and builds combat aircraft like the F-35 along with a wide range of military technology systems for governments in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and other regions.
