On the brink of the second anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and in light of the recent death of prominent Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny in an Arctic penal colony, both the United States and the European Union are enforcing additional sanctions on Russia.
On Friday, The Associated Press announced the US Treasury, State Department, and Commerce Department plan Friday to enact roughly 600 new sanctions on Russia and its war machine in the largest single wave of penalties since Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
These actions follow a series of recent arrests and indictments revealed by the Justice Department on Thursday, specifically targeting Russian businessmen. Among those implicated are the head of Russia's second-largest bank and their associates in five separate federal cases.
The European Union also revealed the enforcement of sanctions on numerous foreign companies, accusing them of exporting dual-use goods to Russia with potential applications in its war against Ukraine.
The 27-nation bloc specified its targeting of numerous Russian officials, including members of the judiciary, local politicians, and those involved in the unlawful deportation and military re-education of Ukrainian children.
"The American people and people around the world understand that the stakes of this fight extend far beyond Ukraine," President Joe Biden said in a statement announcing the sanctions.
"If Putin does not pay the price for his death and destruction, he will keep going. And the costs to the United States - along with our NATO Allies and partners in Europe and around the world - will rise."
Plan Of Action:
To curb Moscow's revenue from oil and petroleum product exports, the US and its allies have introduced a price ceiling.
According to an article by The Guardian, to reduce funding for the war while still ensuring supplies to the global market, a coalition involving the G7 leading economies, the EU, and Australia had set a price cap of $60 a barrel of Russian crude.
However, experts have warned that the sanctions are not enough to stop Moscow's attacks.
"What Congress does to pass additional military assistance to Ukraine is going to matter far, far more than anything else they could do on the sanctions front," Peter Harrell, a former National Security Council official, said.
In the interim, Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer, headed to Ukraine on Friday to try to reassure the country's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, and other officials that Congress will deliver another round of US aid. This comes even as a package that would provide $60bn to the war-torn country is stalled in the US House.
"I feel I have to be there because it's so crucial," Schumer declared. "We are right at a vortex, a critical turning point in the whole west. And if we abandon Ukraine, the consequences for America are severe."
