The US on Friday issued sweeping sanctions on Russia to mark the second anniversary of the Ukraine invasion, targeting more than 500 people and entities, including Russian officials linked to the death in custody of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
The sanctions, described as the largest single tranche since the start of the Ukraine war, also seek to impose a cost for the death last week in a Siberian prison of Russian President Vladimir Putin's most vocal critic, Alexei Navalny, with measures taken against three Russian officials.
The sanctions targeted Russia's Mir payment system, Russian financial institutions and its military industrial base, evaders of previous sanctions, future energy production and other areas.
The latest US action seeks to hold Russia to account over the war and the death of Navalny, US President Joe Biden said in a statement, as Washington looks to continue to support Ukraine even as it faces acute shortages of ammunition and US military aid has been delayed for months in Congress.
"Today, I am announcing more than 500 new sanctions against Russia for its ongoing war of conquest on Ukraine and for the death of Aleksey Navalny [sic], who was a courageous anti-corruption activist and Putin’s fiercest opposition leader. These sanctions will target individuals connected to Navalny’s imprisonment as well as Russia’s financial sector, defense industrial base, procurement networks and sanctions evaders across multiple continents. They will ensure Putin pays an even steeper price for his aggression abroad and repression at home," said Biden.
The US Treasury Department targeted nearly 300 people and entities, while the State Department hit over 250 and the Commerce Department added over 90 companies to the Entity List.
It was an increase from last year, when the US imposed sanctions on more than 200 individuals and entities.
Friday's US sanctions came in partnership with those from EU member nations and Britain. The actions are the latest of thousands of targets announced by the US and its allies following Russia's February 24, 2022, invasion of Ukraine, which has killed tens of thousands and destroyed cities.
Earlier this week, the EU approved a package of Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia, banning nearly 200 entities and individuals accused of helping Moscow procure weapons or of involvement in kidnapping Ukrainian children.
Russia's export-focused, $2.2-trillion economy has proven more resilient to the unprecedented sanctions than either Moscow or the West anticipated.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called for sustained support for Ukraine in a statement issued Friday. "We must sustain our support for Ukraine even as we weaken Russia’s war machine. It’s critical that Congress steps up to join our allies around the world in giving Ukraine the means to defend itself and its freedom against Putin’s barbarous assault," she said.
Targeting Russia's Mir payment system
The US Treasury slapped sanctions on Russia's state-owned National Payment Card System, the operator of the Mir payment system.
Mir payments cards have become more important since its US rivals suspended operations in Russia after Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, and their payment cards which were issued in the country stopped working abroad.
"The Government of Russia's proliferation of Mir has permitted Russia to build out a financial infrastructure that enables Russian efforts to evade sanctions and reconstitute severed connections to the international financial system," the Treasury statement said.
Also targeted were over a dozen Russian banks, investment firms, venture capital funds, and fintech companies, including SPB Bank, which is owned by SPB Exchange, Russia's second-largest stock exchange which specialises in trading foreign shares.
Export restrictions on Russian, Turkish, Chinese entities
The action, one day before the second anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, means companies will be placed on the Commerce Department's "Entity List," essentially banning US shipments to them.
Of the new entities listed, 63 were from Russia, 16 from Turkey, eight from China and four from the UAE.
The Commerce Department said some of the companies were added for their roles in diverting controlled microelectronics to Russia’s military and intelligence authorities.
Russian officials targeted over Navalny's death
The US State Department on Friday also targeted three Russian Federal Penitentiary Service officials it accused of being connected to Navalny's death, including its deputy director who it said reportedly instructed prison staff to exert harsher treatment on Navalny.
Navalny, 47, fell unconscious and died suddenly last week after a walk at the "Polar Wolf" penal colony above the Arctic Circle where he was serving a three-decade sentence, the prison service said.
Biden has directly blamed Putin. The Kremlin has denied the charges.
The US actions also targeted individuals involved in what the State Department called the forcible transfer or deportation of Ukrainian children to camps promoting indoctrination in Russia, Belarus and Crimea.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP and Reuters)
