The Trump administration has targeted Russian oligarchs and allies of Vladimir Putin in new sanctions for alleged “malign activity” around the world, the US Treasury Department has said.
Seven Russian oligarchs and 17 Russian government officials have been hit with the sanctions, another move to show that the Trump administration is taking a stand against Moscow. A dozen Russian companies owned by the oligarchs have also been targeted, along with a state-owned arms-dealing company and a subsidiary bank.
“The Russian government operates for the disproportionate benefit of oligarchs and government elites,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in a statement. “The Russian government engages in a range of malign activity around the globe, including continuing to occupy Crimea and instigate violence in eastern Ukraine, supplying the Assad regime with material and weaponry as they bomb their own civilians, attempting to subvert Western democracies, and malicious cyber activities.”
“Russian oligarchs and elites who profit from this corrupt system will no longer be insulated from the consequences of their government’s destabilizing activities,” he added.
Among those sanctioned is Oleg Deripaska, an oligarch and the owner of one of Russia’s largest industrial groups, Basic Element, which was also targeted.
While the administration has made moves to increase pressure on Russia, Mr Trump has avoided directly criticising Mr Putin and even invited the Russian leader to meet with him, possibly at the White House.
Russian regional governor Alexei Dyumin, who was placed on a new US sanctions list, considers the sanctions against Russia “unfriendly and counterproductive,” Mr Dyumin’s assistant said.
Dyumin, the governor of Tula region, told Reuters through his assistant that the sanctions will not help in resolving issues between Washington and Moscow.
