The United States and the European Union are piling new sanctions on Russia on the eve of the second anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine and in retaliation for the death of noted Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny last week in an Arctic penal colony.
In all, 106 more officials and 88 “entities” — often companies, banks, government agencies or other organizations — have been added to the European bloc’s sanctions list, bringing the tally of those targeted to more than 2,000 people and entities, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and his associates.
The U.S. Treasury Department plans Friday to impose more than 500 new sanctions on Russia and its war machine in the largest single tranche of penalties since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the White House said in a release.
“The American people and people around the world understand that the stakes of this fight extend far beyond Ukraine,” President Joe Biden said in a statement announcing the sanctions.
“If Putin does not pay the price for his death and destruction, he will keep going. And the costs to the United States — along with our NATO Allies and partners in Europe and around the world — will rise.”
Ahead of the two-year anniversary of Russia’s Ukraine invasion, the U.S. is set to impose additional sanctions against Russia following the death of imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny. The sanctions are anticipated to cover many elements including the country’s sources of revenue for the Russian economy.
The U.S. specifically was to target individuals associated with Navalny’s imprisonment, as the sanctions come a day after Biden met with the opposition leader’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, and the couple’s daughter in California. It was also hitting “Russia’s financial sector, defence industrial base, procurement networks and sanctions evaders across multiple continents,” Biden said.
Many of the new U.S. sanctions announced Friday target Russian firms that contribute to the Kremlin’s war effort — including drone and industrial chemical manufacturers and machine tool importers — as well as financial institutions, such as the state-owned operator of Russia’s Mir National Payment System.
In addition, 26 third-country people and firms from across China, Serbia, the United Arab Emirates and Liechtenstein are listed for sanctions for assisting Russia…
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