President Biden announced in a statement on Friday over 500 new sanctions on Russian entities, one day before the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and less than a week after the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
The sanctions 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.” There will also be export restrictions on almost 100 entities “for providing backdoor support for Russia’s war machine.” This comes one day after the EU imposed its thirteenth sanctions package against Russia, targeting the country’s war-making abilities.
This is the largest number of sanctions imposed since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, according to the US Treasury Department. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated:
Russia’s economy and military-industrial base are showing clear signs of weakness in part due to the actions we, along with our partners and allies around the world, have taken to support Ukraine’s brave defense…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.
In his statement, President Biden also called for the House of Representatives to pass the bipartisan National Security Supplemental Bill, which the Senate approved last week. The bill provides funding for Ukraine. Said Biden of the importance of these actions, “[h]istory is watching. The failure to support Ukraine at this critical moment will not be forgotten. Now is the time for us to stand strong with Ukraine and stand united with our Allies and partners.”