The United States on Wednesday, 6 April, announced another round of harsh economic measures against Russia, including sanctions on the children of President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's wife and daughter.
"These individuals have enriched themselves at the expense of the Russian people. Some of them are responsible for providing the support necessary to underpin Putin’s war on Ukraine. This action cuts them off from the US financial system and freezes any assets they hold in the United States," the White House said in a press release.
Putin's daughter Katerina Vladimirovna Tikhonova is a tech executive whose work supports the Russian government and its defense industry. His other daughter, Maria Vladimirovna Vorontsova, leads government-funded programs.
Among the other sanctions imposed by the US, the G7 grouping of nations, and the European Union are the full blocking of Russia's largest financial institution Sberbank, and Russia's largest private ban, Alfa Bank.
"This action will freeze any of Sberbank’s and Alfa Bank’s assets touching the US financial system and prohibit US persons from doing business with them. Sberbank holds nearly one-third of the overall Russian banking sector’s assets and is systemically critical to the Russian economy."White House
Full blocking sanctions have also been imposed on major Russian state-owned enterprises, and new investments in Russia by US persons has been prohibited.
"The United States and more than 30 allies and partners across the world have levied the most impactful, coordinated, and wide-ranging economic restrictions in history. Experts predict Russia’s GDP will contract up to 15 percent this year, wiping out the last fifteen years of economic gains," the White House said, adding that Russia will very likely lose its status as a major economy.
'Sanctions on Russia Should Give China an Idea...': US
Sanctions imposed on Russia should give China an understanding of the measures it would invite if it provides material support to Moscow, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said on Wednesday.
"It gives President Xi, I think, a pretty good understanding of what might come his way should he, in fact, support Putin in any material fashion," Sherman told a House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, reported news agency Reuters.
Meanwhile, the United States Department of Defense, also called the Pentagon, on Wednesday said that it had assessed that Ukraine could win the war against Russia.
"Of course they can win this," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby was quoted as saying Reuters.
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