WASHINGTON — The State Department on Tuesday announced a major new round of sanctions against dozens of Russian companies and individuals to further punish Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, including oligarchs close to President Vladimir V. Putin and technology institutions with ties to the Russian military.
“While Ukrainians continue to bravely defend their homeland in the face of President Putin’s brutal war, the Russian elite run huge revenue-generating businesses and finance their own lavish lifestyles outside of Russia,” Foreign Minister Antony J. Blinken said in a statement. he announced The Measures.
Many of the new targets on the new Foreign Office list, or on a list announced Tuesday by the Treasury Department, are already covered by sanctions imposed by the European Union and Britain. One is Alina Kabaeva, a former Olympic gymnast and member of the Russian State Duma who was long believed to be Putin’s romantic partner.
The move blocks Ms. Kabaeva from accessing assets in the United States or transacting with Americans, and denies her a visa to enter the United States.
Other new targets include a few billionaires: Dmitry Pumpyanskiy, the chairman of a Russian steelmaker; Andrey Melnichenko, the founder of fertilizer and coal companies; and Alexander Ponomarenko, a businessman who has “close ties to other oligarchs and the construction of Vladimir Putin’s seaside palace,” said Mr. shine.
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The new measures also include two dozen of Russia’s “key defence-related research and development institutions, semiconductor manufacturers and advanced computer and electronics entities,” said Mr. shine. They include the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, which has developed drones and other devices for the Russian military.
Mr Putin has “repeatedly underlined his concern about Russia’s access to microelectronics,” according to a foreign ministry fact sheet, claiming the new measures would deal another blow to Russia’s war machine.
Daniel Fried, a former U.S. sanctions policy coordinator in the Obama administration, called the new measures “a solid job,” and said the actions against high-tech entities were particularly important.
He also said Russia and sanctions experts have taken note of the measures taken against Putin’s alleged romantic partner. “Many of us smiled when we saw Kabaeva,” he said.
Mr Fried urged the Biden administration to redouble its efforts to impose a more consistent global cap on the purchase price of Russian oil, which could deprive the Kremlin of billions of dollars in revenue. Leaders of the Group of Seven discussed such a limit at a meeting in Germany at the end of June, but have not announced a concrete plan.
“They have to deliver – it’s been a month,” he said. “They need something effective to eat off Putin’s income. This package is good, but the need requires even more.”
Also on the new US list are the Joint Stock Company State Transportation Leasing Company, a state-owned company designated by the State Department as Russia’s largest transportation leasing company, and four of its subsidiaries.
And the Foreign Ministry will impose visa restrictions on an additional 893 Russian government officials, for hostile actions against Ukraine, along with 31 foreign government officials who have supported Russia’s claims to Ukrainian territory, Mr Blinken said.
Mr Blinken said the United States also imposed sanctions on four men and one organization for “operating illegally on the territory of Ukraine in conjunction with Russia”. One of the four is Kostyantyn Ivashchenko, who has been called “the illegitimate mayor of Russian-controlled Mariupol” by US officials.
The organization chosen by US officials is the Salvation Committee for Peace and Order, which the State Department said was set up in Ukraine’s Kherson region to support Moscow’s attempts to take control there.
Among the Treasury Department’s sanctions targets are three “Kremlin-affiliated elites.” Among them is Andrey Guryev, “a well-known close associate” of Mr Putin who owns Witanhurst, a 25-bedroom mansion with grounds said to be the second largest residential complex in London after Buckingham Palace, said the department in a press release.
The Treasury Department also imposed sanctions on Mr Guryev’s yacht, the Alfa Nero, which he reportedly bought in 2014 for $120 million. The ministry said the Alfa Nero had reportedly disabled its location tracking system.