U.S. businessmen warn against Russia sanctions

Two U.S. business groups are warning a key Senate committee against enacting sanctions on Russia, arguing that the measure would be disruptive to business and counterproductive in advancing U.S. interests.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Petroleum Institute separately wrote to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee urging members to proceed with caution on sanctions targeting foreign governments, Bloomberg reported.

The letters come the day before the Republican-led panel plans to consider a long-stalled bill to sanction Russia for meddling in the 2016 election.

The paper referenced in the letter reads that "sanctions are used as a blunt instrument when circumstances call for a scalpel." "At times, the United States has applied sanctions in a sweeping manner without sufficient regard for their effectiveness," the Chamber added.

The business group asked the committee to "reconsider the legislation and refine it further" to avoid harming U.S. companies and competitiveness.

The American Petroleum Institute went a step further, urging a "no" vote on the bill introduced by Senators Lindsey Graham and Robert Menendez.

Federal relations director for API Chris Kelley stressed that "many American and Western companies fear they will be inadvertently harmed by the excessive international sanctions in this bill. "The proposed sanctions could disrupt energy companies operating globally," he added.