The White House announced tonight that it would impose personal sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov following the war in Ukraine. Earlier, at the end of a meeting of foreign ministers of its 27 member states in Brussels, the European Union announced personal sanctions against the two. Britain has also decided to impose similar sanctions.
Read more in Calcalist:
According to EU Foreign Minister Joseph Burrell, Putin is now the only leader in the world to face EU sanctions – alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. He said European sanctions would lead to an increase in Russia’s inflation rate, hurt its industry and lead to a reduction in foreign investment in the country.
These sanctions were announced even though Russia had warned that personal sanctions on Putin would be considered for her to cross a red line, and that she would see them as a declaration of severance of relations with her. As part of these sanctions, Putin and Lavrov’s assets will be frozen, and further sanctions will be imposed on Russia’s financial and energy sectors. Following the union’s decision, it was reported that Britain had also decided to impose personal sanctions on Putin and Lavrov.
Putin claims that his salary, amounting to $ 140,000, is his only official source of income, and that his assets include two apartments and several vehicles. In reality, however, the Russian president lives in a huge house, larger than Buckingham Palace, and among other things he was photographed wearing watches worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The new restrictions join the sanctions already imposed on Russia by European countries and the United States. CNN detailed the main sanctions announced in recent days.
UK: Prime Minister Boris Johnson this morning (Friday) unveiled a new round of sanctions in parliament that he says is “the largest and most severe package of economic sanctions ever imposed on Russia.” Johnson told lawmakers that Putin is an “attacker with blood on his hands” who will suffer “condemnations from all over the world and history” due to the invasion of Ukraine. Johnson added that Britain and its allies “tried every channel of diplomacy until the last minute”, but in his opinion Putin was determined to attack.
The sanctions announced by Johnson include the freezing of assets in the UK by the major banks in Russia and their exclusion from the British financial system. This means they will not have access to the British currency and will not be able to transfer payments through the UK. In addition, large Russian companies will not be able to raise capital or borrow money in the British markets. Britain is also freezing the assets of 100 individuals and companies, including Putin’s ex-son-in-law, Kirill Shmalov, and Peter Fromskov, CEO of Promsvyazbank, who were also sanctioned. The country’s largest and tank maker Uralvagonzavod.Also, Russia’s national airline Aeroflot will not be allowed to land in the UK.
Additional sanctions include a ban on the export of components that could be used for military purposes and at the same time the UK will stop exporting high-tech items and oil refining equipment. There will also be a limit on deposits that Russians can deposit into British bank accounts. Johnson concluded by saying that there were still options for further sanctions, including Russia’s removal from the SWIFT payment system. He added that the sanctions would also apply to Belarus, due to the assistance it provided to Russia in the attack.
The European Union European Commission President Ursula van der Lane and French President Emmanuel Macron have pledged to make “maximum impact on the Russian economy and political elite.” The sanctions imposed by the union in recent days are directed against the financial, energy and transport sectors and include restrictions on exports and bans on trade financing. According to Van der Lane, the current sanctions go against 70% of the Russian banking sector and government companies “and will not allow Russia to upgrade its refineries.” The union also restricts the deposits of Putin’s associates, and intends to restrict Russia’s access to sensitive technology for aircraft parts.
U.S: “Putin has chosen this war,” U.S. President Joe Biden declared last night, revealing further sanctions against Russia that include restrictions on technology exports, which Biden claims would significantly limit Russia’s ability to advance its military and aviation industry. According to the White House, the new sanctions include Restrictions on semiconductor exports, telecommunications equipment, encrypted security, lasers, sensors, navigation equipment and aviation technology.
The U.S. has also imposed sanctions on Russian banks and “corrupt billionaires” and their families close to Putin. The U.S. will also ban 13 large public companies from raising capital in the country, including energy giant Gazprom and Sberbank, Russia’s largest financial institution. The White House also intends to impose sanctions on companies from Belarus.
Japan: Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has announced that Japan will impose sanctions on Russia’s financial institutions, military organizations and individuals. The measures include freezing the assets of individuals and financial institutions and banning exports to military organizations.
Canada: The Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau announced last night that he too will impose direct sanctions on Putin, Lavrov and the President of Belarus Lukashenko. Trudeau added that he supports Russia’s suspension from Swift’s international money transfer system.
Australia: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the country would “begin imposing further sanctions on oligarchs, whose economic weight is of strategic importance to Moscow and more than 300 members of the Russian parliament.” Morrison added that Australia is working with the US to impose sanctions, which will also apply to senior Belarus officials.
New Zealand: The state bans the export of goods to the Russian army and security forces. Prime Minister Jessinda Arden has announced that they are severing trade ties with Russia and will ban the entry of senior Russian officials into the country. “Here and now we must take immediate action,” Arden said at a news conference.
Taiwan: Taiwan has announced that it will join the economic sanctions imposed on Russia, but did not specify what measures it is considering. According to the Taiwanese Foreign Ministry, the imposition of sanctions is intended to “oblige Russia to stop its military aggression against Ukraine and to burst into a dialogue of peace among all parties as soon as possible,” they added. Taiwan is a leading manufacturer of semiconductors.