Russia sanctioned 12 former and current government officials as well as Hunter Biden (the son of Mr. Biden). The penalties that the Americans have imposed on the Americans include:
General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Jake Sullivan, White House National Security Advisor
CIA Director Bill Burns
Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary
Daleep Singh, Deputy National Security Advisor
Samantha Power, USAID Director
Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of State
Adewale Adeyemo, Deputy Treasury Secretary
Reta Jo Lewis, Chairman of Export-Import Bank
In a statement, Russia’s Foreign Ministry stated that it will sanction more U.S. military leaders, officials and journalists who criticize the country.
The ministry stated that U.S. officials who have been hit by sanctions from Russia cannot enter the country, and any assets they tell there are frozen. However, high-level contacts are not affected by the measures.
Psaki was one of the Biden administration officials sanctioned. He told reporters during the White House Press Briefing that none the U.S. figures penalized were planning to travel to Russia or had bank accounts affected by the measures, “so we will continue.”
Moscow imposed sanctions after the Biden administration had targeted a wide variety of Russian financial institutions and government officials, including President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and oligarchs. The economic penalties were intended to punish Russia in the wake of the 20-day-old war in Ukraine.
The U.S. and its European allies sanctioned Russia’s largest banks. The Central Bank of Russia was also sanctioned. then moved to remove financial institutions from SWIFT’s financial messaging system. Last week, Mr. Biden declared that his administration would also ban Russian oil and gas imports to the U.S. This is a targeted move against a critical sector of Russia’s economy.
