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The new US sanctions law – Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act 2017 – is not a legal monster threatening European interests. In the view of Alan Riley, it stems from specific and legitimate concerns on Capitol Hill about the threat to the integrity of US democratic institutions flowing from cyber-attacks by the Russian Federation and the behaviour of the current President. The law’s most substantial legislative footprint merely codifies into law the Obama-era executive orders already agreed with the European Union. On a more positive note, the sanctions law provides opportunities for the US and the EU to cooperate to protect the West’s democratic institutions against future cyber-warfare attacks and to enhance European supply security.

Alan Riley is Senior Fellow at the Institute for Statecraft, Temple Place, London.