“Today, I am announcing more than 500 new sanctions against Russia for its ongoing war of conquest on Ukraine and for the death of Aleksei Navalny,” said by the US President.
The broad sanctions are imposed precisely one week after the opposition leader Aleksei A. Navalny passed away, for which the Russian president Vladimir V. Putin is held responsible by the Biden administration.
Congress is having difficulty coming to a consensus on expanding aid to Ukraine, so the US is depending more and more on financial means to impede Russia’s restock of arms and ammunition and create pressure on its economy.
President Biden urged Congress to give Ukraine additional aid before it’s too late while announcing the sanctions on Friday.
In a statement, he warned, “The failure to support Ukraine at this critical moment will not be forgotten.”
Biden states that in addition to targeting persons connected to Navalny’s prison time, the sanctions will also target Russia’s procurement networks, financial sector, defense industry, and individuals who avoid sanctions across several continents.
“They will ensure Putin pays an even steeper price for his aggression abroad and repression at home,” he continued.
New export restrictions are also being applied by the US to about 100 organizations for “providing backdoor support for Russia’s war machine.”
Sanctions are also being applied by the Biden administration to three Russian officials who had a hand in Mr. Navalny’s death.
“We are working to reduce Russia’s energy revenue even further. Additionally, I’ve given my staff the task of strengthening support for independent media, civil society, and those who defend democracy globally,” stated Biden.
In the past two years, the US and its allies in the Group of Seven have worked to cap the price at which Russian oil can be sold on international markets, freeze the assets worth hundreds of billions of dollars held by the Russian central bank, and implement trade restrictions in an effort to obstruct the flow of technology and military supplies that Russia needs.
The new measures, which were unveiled on Friday, aim to take things a step further. They target important players in Russia’s financial system, delve further into its military supply chain, and target facilitators abroad, such as China and the United Arab Emirates.
Alexei Navalny and Rusia Sanctions
The Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, 47, was serving a three-year sentence when he collapsed and died on February 16. He passed away in the Arctic colony of Polar Wolf.
He was the strongest domestic opponent of Vladimir Putin, whom he accused of attempting to assassinate him, having him incarcerated on bogus charges, and denying him medical treatment.
His death was announced on February 16 at 2:19 p.m. Moscow time (1119 GMT).
Yulia Navalnaya, the politician’s wife, blamed Russian president Vladimir Putin for her husband’s passing.
Navalny was spotted joking in court via video connection the day before his death. Teasingly, he demanded that a judge use some of his large pay to replenish his personal account.
His death shocked the world and brought international leaders and demonstrators together in grief.
Since Navalny’s death, the Biden administration has been preparing massive sanctions, which have been eventually announced by the US President.
Navalny and his team raised their voice against corruption in Russia and against President Vladimir Putin and his government through his social media channels. They organized political protests and campaigns throughout Russia.
In a 2011 radio broadcast, he described Russia’s ruling party as a party of “crooks and thieves”.
He was imprisoned twice, in 2013 and 2014, on criminal charges that were deemed politically motivated and meant to prevent him from standing in future elections.
He was medically evacuated to Berlin in August 2020, having been poisoned with a Novichok nerve toxin. He accused Putin of causing his poisoning.
In January 2021, he returned to Russia and was promptly jailed on charges of breaking parole restrictions while hospitalized in Germany.
In March 2022, he was sentenced to nine more years in jail after being found guilty of contempt of court in a new trial.
In August 2023, he was sentenced to another 19 years in jail on extremist accusations.
In December 2023, he went missing from jail for about three weeks.
On February 16, 2024, the Russian prison service confirmed that he had died at the age of 47.
His death provoked demonstrations in Russia and several other nations.
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