Sweeping new measures target entities in China, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, among others, in an effort to cut off the Russian supply chain.
The United States has announced new sanctions against some 130 new entities, including companies in China, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, for allegedly supplying the Russian military with much-needed components and technology and furthering the ongoing war in Ukraine.
“Russia depends on willing individuals and entities from third countries to supply its military and continue its horrific war against Ukraine, and we will not hesitate to hold them accountable,” Treasury Secretary Jane Yellen said in a statement Thursday. .
The new measures target crucial supply chains that have otherwise allowed Russia to evade international sanctions and export controls by exploiting “otherwise legitimate economic relationships” with China, Turkey and the UAE.
These loopholes allow entities in the three countries to send Russia “high priority dual-use items,” such as vehicle parts or encryption software that can be used by civilians or the military.
In a move welcomed by Ukraine, the latest sanctions mark the first time Washington has taken action against the production of Russia’s Lancet suicide drones.
Ukrainian soldiers say the drone – an angular gray tube with two sets of four wings – has emerged as an increasing threat on the front lines.
In his nightly video address, President Volodymyr Zelensky praised the measures as “exactly what is needed.”
His chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, agreed.
“I am very happy that … restrictions are being tightened against companies linked to the military-industrial complex of the Russian Federation …,” Yermak wrote on the messaging app Telegram.
The Treasury Department’s new sanctions also target Russia’s domestic industrial base, which, the Treasury Department said, had been reoriented from “producing goods for the Russian people to trying to ensure that the war machine can hold.”
In addition, the US State Department on Thursday added 100 new sanctions against Russia’s energy, metals and mining sectors, defense procurement and “against those engaged in supporting the Russian government’s war efforts and other malign activities.”
Meanwhile, the Commerce Ministry has also blacklisted twelve Russian companies and another company from Uzbekistan, which is said to have helped Moscow acquire crucial drone technology.
The US, European Union and other countries have already imposed sanctions on hundreds of Russian individuals and entities since Moscow’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Further sanctions have also targeted the economy, freezing foreign assets, restricting exports and otherwise making the cost of doing business in Russia extremely challenging and expensive.
Yellen said the “global sanctions coalition” has “stifled Russia’s access to key inputs for its military-industrial complex and undermined the Kremlin’s ability to wage its unprovoked war.”
Despite the sanctions, Russia’s economy is expected to grow 1.5 percent this year, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development said, as countries such as China, Turkey and India have provided Moscow with a crucial economic lifeline.