WASHINGTON (Washington Insider Magazine) – The US imposed additional penalties against key members of the Russian elite on Thursday, including the spokesperson for Russian President Vladimir Putin, and said it would exclude 19 billionaires and 47 of their relatives and key allies from visiting the US.
According to the White House, sanction targets comprise Kremlin spokesperson Alisher Usmanov and Dmitry Peskov, one of Russia’s wealthiest men.
Usmanov’s superyacht had already been seized by Germany, and the White House stated both the yacht and Usmanov’s private aircraft, which it described as “one of Russia’s largest privately-owned aircraft,” would be barred from use in the United States or by Americans.
At the start of his government’s 4th Cabinet session, President Joe Biden discussed the latest US moves against Russia, stating that the efforts his administration and its partners have recently taken are creating a “profound impact.”
The U.S. Treasury and the State Department announced in a joint statement that they had increased pressure on Moscow by penalizing a number of Russian elites and their families, labeling parts of their property as banned, and punishing Russian intelligence-directed misinformation outlets.
According to the report, the sanctioned elites gave direct or indirect assistance to the Russian administration via their business empires, money, and other assets. According to the statement, the assistance of these people, their family members, and other important elites helps President Putin to launch his unjustified invasion of Ukraine.
Usmanov is recognized as one of Russia’s richest billionaires, with extensive assets in the Russian Federation’s economy as well as globally.
According to the statement, Usmanov’s plane, an Airbus A340-300, was valued at between $350 and $500 million.
State secretary Antony Blinken chimed in on the newest sanctions just after arriving in Brussels for just a day of talks with the European Union, the G-7, and NATO partners, among other allies, according to NBC NEWS.
According to the statement, the US State Department is inflicting significant costs on Russia’s military industry by sanctioning 22 defense-related companies.
