WASHINGTON – The United States added Russian officials and energy firms toa sanctions blacklist on Friday, days before details of further possiblepenalties against Moscow are due to be released.
Washington could release reports as early as Monday laying out thepossibilities for expanded sanctions against Russia over its allegedmeddling in the 2016 US presidential election, an accusation the Kremlinhas repeatedly denied.
Leading Democrats in the US Congress wrote to Trump on Friday, demandingthat the administration use Monday’s deadline to retaliate for what theydescribed as cyber attacks intended to influence other countries’ elections.
A Treasury Department spokesperson said the department is “activelyworking” on reports required under the “Countering America’s AdversariesThrough Terrorism Act” and aimed to release them consistent with timelinesin the legislation.
Russia is already under US sanctions over its annexation of Crimea fromUkraine in 2014 and support for separatist rebels fighting in easternUkraine.
On Friday, Treasury said it had added 21 people and nine companies to thesanctions list, including some that were involved in the delivery ofSiemens gas turbines to Crimea.
It said Friday’s announcement was not related to the reports due on Monday.
“This action underscores the U.S. government’s opposition to Russia’soccupation of Crimea and firm refusal to recognize its attempted annexationof the peninsula,” the department said in a statement.
MANY TENSIONS
The Ukraine-related sanctions represent one of many areas of tensionbetween the United States and Russia, including over how to end the Syriancivil war and whether to hold to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, despite USPresident Donald Trump’s campaign emphasis on improving ties with Moscow.
One person added to the list was Russian Deputy Energy Minister AndreyCherezov, who was put under sanctions by the European Union over his rolein the delivery of turbines to Crimea last year.
Also added was Sergey Topor-Gilka, head of the Russian engineering companyTechnopromexport, as well as multiple subsidiaries of oil producerSurgutneftegaz.
A spokeswoman for Rostec, which is already subject to US sanctions and isthe parent company of Technopromexport, said the company regretted that themain US main tool in international relations was pressure and not dialogue.
The Russian Energy Ministry declined immediate comment.
Daniel Fried, a former US State Department expert, said he viewed Friday’sannouncement as “sanctions maintenance” – essentially targeting individualsand entities that have taken the place of others who have earlier beensanctioned.
“To make sure a sanctions regime is effective, you need to update itperiodically. You don’t simply target people and let it sit, because otherpeople fill in and do the same bad deeds that you targeted the first onesfor,” Fried said.
RIA news agency quoted Vladimir Dzhabarov, deputy chairman of theinternational affairs committee of Russia’s upper house of parliament, assaying: “This is not a policy of sanctions, it is a policy of containing agrowing Russia as much as possible. The Americans declared war on us. Wedraw conclusions from this and move on.”
Separately, the United States could release reports as early as Mondayoutlining the scope for expanding sanctions against Russia, including alist of prominent oligarchs and potential restrictions on the holding ofRussian government debt.
The sanctions law Trump signed on Aug. 2 requires Treasury to prepare alist of the most significant Russian oligarchs “as determined by theircloseness to the Russian regime and their net worth.”
This will be accompanied by a report “describing in detail the potentialeffects of expanding sanctions … to include sovereign debt and the fullrange of derivative products.”
Both reports are due to be sent to Congress by the end of January, weeksbefore Russia is due to vote in a presidential election that PresidentVladimir Putin is widely expected to win.