New US sanctions target Putin’s ‘inner circle’

The Obama administration has announced its third round of sanctions against Russia, this time targeting seven senior Russian officials and 17 companies linked to President Vladimir Putin’s “inner circle.”

On Monday, the White House announced the names of seven Russian officials, including Igor Sechin, head of Russia’s major oil company Rosneft, who would be subject to a freeze on any assets they hold in the United States and a US travel ban.

Other Russian officials targeted by the White House include Oleg Belavencev, a Russian presidential envoy to Crimea and a member of the Russian Security Council, Sergei Chemezov, the director general of Rostec, Dmitry Kozak, deputy prime minister of the Russian Federation, Evgeniy Murov, director of the Federal Protective Service of the Russian Federation, Aleksei Pushkov, chairman of the state Duma committee on International Affairs, and Vyacheslav Volodin, first deputy chief of the staff of the presidential executive office.

The White House has also said that the Commerce and State Departments will revoke any export licenses for high-technology items that could contribute to Russian military capabilities and that Washington will deny any such export license applications in the future.

The latest sanctions constituted the third round of sanctions ordered by the Obama administration against Russia. The United States has already imposed sanctions on a number of other Russian officials and a Russian bank, Bank Rossiya.

In a similar move, the European Union also said it has agreed to impose sanctions on 15 Russian and Ukrainian figures.

All of these sanctions have targeted specific individuals and businesses and have not been aimed at Russia’s economy as a whole.

However, President Barack Obama has said that the US and its European allies would impose sanctions on key sectors of the Russian economy – such as the financial services, energy, metals and mining, engineering and defense sectors– if Moscow launches a military incursion into eastern Ukraine.

The US and EU accuse Moscow of interfering in internal affairs of Ukraine. Russia denies the allegations and insists it will give a painful response to the new sanctions.