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- President Donald Trump said Congress should strengthen a sanctions bill against Russia and Iran by adding tariffs on Tehran.
- The U.S. imports hardly any goods from Iran, making his remark “entirely symbolic,” a trade expert told CNBC.
- Trump’s apparent desire to change the bipartisan bill may affect its chances of passage in Congress.
US President Donald Trump speaks during an announcement in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC on July 29, 2026.Ken Cedeno | AFP | Getty Images
President Donald Trump wants Congress to add tariffs on Iran to a sanctions bill against Russia and Tehran that has bipartisan support.
Those duties would have little effect because the U.S. imports nearly nothing from Iran. But tacking them on to the bill may torpedo its chances of becoming law.
While sanctions against the two countries have widespread support in Congress, Trump’s well-established belief in tariffs as a one-size-fits-all tool for economic coercion is polarizing.
The U.S. imported just $1.4 million in goods from Iran in 2025, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Works of art, collectors pieces and antiques were the largest category of those imports, making up 55% of the value, according to the firm Trading Economics.
It’s hard to imagine that figure increasing much this year — especially since late February, when the U.S. and Israel launched a war against Iran that continues with no end in sight. The U.S. has sanctioned Iran for decades, and the Treasury Department has sought to further squeeze Tehran’s economy amid the war.
“The Administration’s threat to impose tariffs on imports from Iran is entirely symbolic,” Jonathan Doh, professor of international business at Villanova School of Business, said in an email to CNBC. “U.S. imports from Iran are trivial.”
Trump sees it differently. Asked at the White House on Wednesday about the pending sanctions bill, he said, “I’d like them to add Iran as tariffs, not just as sanctions.”
The measure is named after former Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who died unexpectedly in mid-July.
“I’d like to see tariffs on Iran. It would make it much stronger,” Trump said of the bill, which would impose economic sanctions on Russia and those supporting its war against Ukraine.
The legislation would also let Trump slap targeted tariffs on goods imported from the top five countries that buy Russian energy and help it evade sanctions.
Trump claimed Wednesday that modifying it by adding tariffs on Iran is “what Lindsey wanted.”
Graham’s office, which is now occupied by his sister, Darline Graham, did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment on Trump’s remark.
Doh told CNBC that U.S. sanctions on Iran — which already prohibit nearly all trade — are “far more impactful” than tariffs would be.
“Primary sanctions target U.S. persons from trading with Iran, while secondary sanctions target non-U.S. companies and individuals for doing business with Iran,” Doh said.
He noted that Iran was eager to include sanctions relief as part of a now-defunct temporary ceasefire deal with the U.S. that was signed in June, then effectively scrapped weeks later as military action resumed.
The sanctions bill took a key step forward Tuesday, as a bipartisan group of senators said they reached a deal to combine provisions on Russia and Iran into a single legislative package. The chamber then voted 86-12 on a procedural measure to advance the bill. The vote was notable in a Congress that has been riven by partisan divisions.
But that progress could hit a wall if Trump insists additional tariffs on Iran be added to the bill.
Democrats have denounced Trump’s heavy use of tariffs, which has ramped back up this month after being tamped down by the Supreme Court earlier this year. The Trump administration in recent weeks has imposed or announced new duties on goods from dozens of countries, including Canada, Brazil and the 27-member European Union.
The White House and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative did not respond to CNBC’s requests for comment on Trump’s call for tariffs on Iran.
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