Apr 6, 2022
U.S. to Sanction Putin’s Children, Banks After Bucha Atrocities
, Bloomberg News
(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. will impose new sanctions on Russia, including penalties on two of its largest banks and President Vladimir Putin’s adult children, following allegations of atrocities in Ukraine by Russian forces.
Full blocking sanctions will be imposed on Sberbank, Russia’s largest financial institution, and Alfa Bank, the country’s largest private bank, a senior administration official said Wednesday.
Putin’s adult children, along with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s wife and daughter, and members of Russia’s national security council, will also be sanctioned as part of an effort by the U.S. and its allies to crack down on people close to the Russian leader, the official said.
Two of Putin’s daughters -- Mariya Putina and Katerina Tikhonova -- presumably will be subject to the new penalties, the official said.
Other state-owned enterprises that will be subject to full-blocking sanctions include United Aircraft Corporation and United Shipbuilding Corporation.
The U.S. also plans to match a decision by the European Union to phase out imports of Russian coal, as well as to impose a ban on investment in Russia, a U.S. official said Tuesday.
Read More: EU to Propose Banning Russian Coal Imports After Atrocities
The announcements follow the emergence of photos and reports of dead civilians in Bucha and other areas near Kyiv that fueled global outrage against Russia. President Joe Biden described the apparent killings as war crimes and said Putin could face a trial. Moscow has denied that its armed forces committed atrocities in Ukraine.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Treasury Department took aim at Russia’s effort to avoid a default on its sovereign debt by halting dollar debt payments from the nation’s accounts at U.S. banks.
The European Commission on Tuesday proposed new sanctions on Russia, including the coal ban, new penalties on oligarchs and other elites and their families, export controls and blocking access to Russian shipping carriers. The proposals also includes sanctions on Putin’s daughters.
The announcements come as Secretary of State Antony Blinken in is Europe for meetings with NATO allies to coordinate the latest punishments for Russia.
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