US targets Russia with hundreds of sanctions over Ukraine war, Navalny death

WASHINGTON: The United States on Friday imposed extensive sanctions against Russia, targeting more than 500 people and entities to mark the second anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and retaliate for the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

President Joe Biden said the measures aim to ensure Russian President Vladimir Putin “pays an even steeper price for his aggression abroad and repression at home.”The sanctions targeted Russia’s Mir payment system, financial institutions and its military industrial base, sanctions evasion, future energy production and other areas. They also hit prison officials the US says are linked to Navalny’s death.

Russia’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the sanctions.

The Biden administration is seeking to continue supporting Ukraine as the country faces acute shortages of ammunition and the approval of more US military aid has been delayed for months in the US Congress. The European Union and Britain also took action against Russia on Friday.

However, Russia’s export-focused $2.2-trillion economy has proved more resilient to two years of unprecedented sanctions than either Moscow or the West anticipated. Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine on Feb 24, 2022 and the two-year war has seen tens of thousands killed and cities destroyed.

The US Treasury Department targeted nearly 300 people and entities on Friday, while the State Department hit over 250 people and entities and the Commerce Department added over 90 companies to the Entity List.

The United States and its allies have imposed sanctions on thousands of Russian targets in the past two years.

“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,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.The US Treasury imposed sanctions on 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 US Treasury Department said in a statement.