Obama extends sanctions against Russia to include wealthy Putin allies

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• published: 14 Apr 2014
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President Obama has extended financial sanctions against Russia to include wealthy supporters of Vladimir Putin and a bank close to the Kremlin, in a bid to deter Russian military incursions into eastern and southern Ukraine. Amid growing pressure for a tougher US response to the crisis, the White House also issued a new executive order authorising a co-ordinated economic blockade with the European Union against key Russian industries if the situation escalates. EU leaders agreed to add 12 unnamed Russians to a blacklist of 21 individuals and ordered the European commission to examine the impact of broader trade and economic warfare action against Russia and also said they would implement a trade agreement with Kiev. The EU summit acquiesced in the Kremlin's seizure of Crimea from Ukraine, while trying to look tough by talking up the prospects of a potential trade war with Moscow if Putin expands his land-grab ambitions beyond the Black Sea peninsula. The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, demanded a European monitoring mission in Ukraine, but conceded it would be "quite unrealistic" for the Russians to allow such a mission into Crimea. White House officials also revealed the Pentagon was providing "non-lethal" assistance to the Ukrainian military and claimed there were signs of human rights abuses against minorities in Crimea, including the apparent torture of dead Tatar man and "houses marked in a biblical fashion". "We have continued to be deeply concerned by events in Ukraine," said Obama. "We have seen a illegal referendum in Crimea, an illegitimate move by the Russians to annex Crimea and dangerous risks of escalation." "Because of these choices the US is today moving to impose additional costs on Russia. We're imposing sanctions against more senior officials of the Russian government and in addition we are sanctioning a number of other individuals with substantial resources and influence." The additional financial sanctions target 20 new individuals, including eight officials previously identified by the European Union. They extend an initial list announced on Monday to add what the White House calls "Putin's cronies". The previous blacklist of 11 officials shied away from touching top figures or oligarchs. Most significantly, the new blacklist targets several influential businessmen known to be close to Putin. Gennady Timchenko, who controls the Gunvor Group, the fourth-largest crude oil trader in the world, has a net worth of $15.3bn and was said by Forbes to be "one of the most powerful people in Russia." Arkady and Boris Rotenberg, judo friends of Putin and co-owners of SMP Bank and SGM Group, which provide construction services to state-controlled gas giant Gazprom, were among the elites said to have profited from the Sochi Olympics. Companies controlled by Arkady Rotenberg won at least $7.4bn worth of contracts related to the Games, Bloomberg reported. He is one of the most influential businessmen in the country, according to Forbes. The new list also targets Bank Rossiya, which the US claims is the personal bank for senior officials of the Russian Federation. All those included will have any US assets frozen and a ban placed on any dealings with US companies, which the White House claims will affect their ability to do business globally. Several Russian politicians openly mocked earlier White House sanctions against government officials, claiming they did not have any assets that could be hurt by the move and would not deter their policy in Crimea. But officials in Washington insisted the new steps -- together with the threat of co-ordinated action with the EU against Russian industry -- were intended to send a signal to deter possible Russian military incursions in eastern and southern Ukraine. "We are concerned by recent Russian military movements. It would be a significant escalation for Russia to move into southern and eastern Ukraine," a senior US administration official told reporters. "That is part of the context [of these sanctions]; to send a signal that these key sectors of the Russian economy are in play for sanctions." The official added: "Sanctions build over time. They are very powerful. People might think they are a mere wrist slap, but I can assure you they are not." Despite calls from Kiev for military support from the US, Obama has made clear that he is not willing to risk American troops in Ukraine and is so far not supplying arms. "We are not going to be getting into a military excursion in Ukraine," the president said in an interview on Wednesday. But White House officials confirmed on Thursday that the Pentagon was already providing "non lethal assistance" to Ukraine -- a phrase that could indicate intelligence and satellite imagery, or equipment such as night-vision goggles.