President Joe Biden has announced that the US is ordering heavy financial sanctions against Russian banks and oligarchs, declaring that Moscow had flagrantly violated international law by invading Ukraine.
“None of us will be fooled” by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claims about Ukraine, the US president said.
And he said more sanctions could be on the way if Mr Putin proceeds further.
Mr Biden said the sanctions against Russian oligarchs and their families, as well as Russian sovereign debt, was in retaliation for the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, Mr Biden said those sanctions were just the “first tranche” of what the US and its allies stand ready to put in place if Russia launches a larger invasion of Ukraine.
“He’s setting up a rationale to take more territory by force,” Mr Biden said of recent comments by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“This is the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
Mr Biden added that he was authorising the movement of some US troops in Europe to Nato’s Baltic allies as a show of support and solidarity amid the Russian threat.
Mr Biden joined the 27 European Union members who unanimously agreed on Tuesday to levy their own initial set of sanctions targeting Russian officials over their actions in Ukraine.
EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said the package, approved on Tuesday, “will hurt Russia, and it will hurt a lot”.
📍Target economic relations between the two breakaway regions and the European Union.
📍Target the ability of the Russian state to access the EU’s capital and financial markets.
These actions are being taken in close coordination with our partners and allies.Advertisement— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) February 22, 2022
Mr Borrell said the sanctions would affect members of Russia’s lower house of parliament and other individuals involved in approving the deployment of Russian troops to separatist-held regions of eastern Ukraine.
He says the package will also affect Russia’s financing of policies linked to Ukraine by limiting access to EU financial markets.
“This story is not finished,” said Mr Borrell of Russian actions in Ukraine.
The first set of sanctions is aimed at the 351 Russian politicians who voted for recognising separatist regions in Ukraine, as well as 27 other Russian officials and institutions from the defence and banking world.
They also sought to limit Moscow’s access to EU capital and financial markets.
Later, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he has cancelled plans to meet his Russian counterpart in Geneva later this week as Russia presses ahead with recognition of separatist regions of Ukraine.
Mr Blinken told reporters that Russia’s actions indicated Moscow was not serious about a diplomatic path to resolving the crisis.
As a result, he said he had called off his Thursday meeting with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Echoing President Joe Biden, Mr Blinken said Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to recognise the independence of Ukraine’s Donbas region was a violation of international law. And, he said the placement of Russian troops there constituted the beginning of an invasion.
Although he held out hope for a peaceful resolution through diplomacy, he said he did not believe a meeting with Mr Lavrov would be productive at this time.
