The State and Treasury Departments on Wednesday sanctioned 300 individuals and entities involved in enabling Russia’s war efforts in Ukraine. File Pool Photo by Shawn Thew/UPI | License Photo
The U.S. State and Treasury Departments on Wednesday announced sanctions against 300 individuals and entities helping to enable Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The State Department said it is imposing sanctions on 100 targets spanning “multiple sectors essential to Russia’s war effort, while the Treasury is sanctioning 200 individuals and entities within and outside of Russia while banning certain software and IT services. Advertisement
“These targets include those engaged in the development of Russia’s future energy, metals, and mining production and export capacity; sanctions evasion and circumvention; and producing material needed to support Russia’s war effort,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
He added measures are also being taken “against malign actors responsible for the forced transfer, re-education, and deportation of Ukrainian children.”
The Treasury said the targets include entities in Asia — including China — as well as the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Central Asia and the Caribbean.
“Russia’s war economy is deeply isolated from the international financial system, leaving the Kremlin’s military desperate for access to the outside world. Today’s actions strike at their remaining avenues for international materials and equipment, including their reliance on critical supplies from third countries,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a Wednesday statement. Advertisement
Both the State and Treasury departments said the sanctions are guided by the G7 commitments to intensify pressure on Russia for the unprovoked war on Ukraine.
Yellen said the sanctions increase the risk for financial institutions dealing with Russia’s economy and the measures are “eliminating paths for evasion, and diminishing Russia’s ability to benefit from access to foreign technology, equipment, software, and IT services.”
Acting under authorization from President Joe Biden, the Treasury Department said sanctions on five Russian financial institutions are being updated to include their locations outside of Russia.
That includes Promsvyazbank Public Joint Stock Company to include its locations in Beijing as well as Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, and New Delhi, India.
For the State Corporation Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs Vnesheconombank, sanctions will now include locations in Beijing, and Mumbai.
Sberbank locations in Beijing, as well as New Delhi and Mumbai are now included and for VTB its operations in New Delhi, India, Beijing and Shanghai are now sanctioned.
The VTB Capital Holdings Closed Joint Stock Company location in Hong Kong is now also sanctioned.
Blinken said the United States also “remains concerned by the scale and breadth of exports from the People’s Republic of China that supply Russia’s military-industrial base.” Advertisement
He said the State Department is expanding sanctions on a wide range of dual-use goods provided by China that Russia is using for war production.
The sanctions expansion on Russian financial infrastructure will include public market trading done by the Moscow Exchange.
Other Russian financial entities sanctioned are the National Clearing Center, Joint Stock Company Russian National Reinsurance Company, the Joint Stock Company National Settlement Depository and gas industry insurance company Sogaz.
