Russia responded this Friday to the new package of sanctions imposed by the United States because of the war in Ukraine by banning the entry into the country of more than 500 US citizens, including former President Barack Obama.
“Washington should have understood long ago that not a single hostile attack against Russia will go unanswered,” the Russian Foreign Ministry (MFA) said in a statement.
Among the targets of the Russian sanctions are rulers, congressmen and senators elected in November 2022, as well as directors and administrators of companies in the military industry that supply weapons to Ukraine.
The blacklist includes members of the security forces of the federal state who “persecute dissidents” and gives as an example the participants in the assault on the Capitol (seat of the US Congress), which occurred in January 2021.
Specialists and analysts from US institutions who participated in the spread of false news about Russia, journalists and well-known television presenters such as Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert were also prohibited from entering Russian territory.
The Russian Foreign Ministry considers that the sanctions imposed on Russia seek to cause the greatest possible damage to the country, since they affect both state officials and ordinary citizens, so Moscow will continue to apply the principle of reciprocity in case of sanctions or discriminatory measures against their nationals
It also cancels a consular visit to jailed Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich, accused of espionage, after a group of Russian journalists recently failed to obtain visas to accompany Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on his trip to New York to attend UN meetings. Security Council.
The United States imposed a new package of sanctions on Moscow on Thursday that affects nearly 300 entities, people, ships and planes involved in the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine.
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, specified in a statement that these sanctions, announced within the framework of the G7 (group of the most industrialized countries in the world) summit in Hiroshima, Japan, are aimed at the energy, defense , miner and technology and people who are helping Russia to increase its energy production and capacity.
It also took further steps to dismantle the operational and logistics network of the Wagner mercenary group, such as the 224th Flight Unit State Airlines, which transported members of that group and their equipment to countries where it is known to be involved.
The sanctions also target people involved in the illegal transportation and deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia and Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories, such as Russia’s human rights commissioner Tatiana Moskalkova.
In addition to the 200 sanctions announced by the US State Department, there are others announced by the Treasury Department against an additional 104 companies and 22 individuals, located in more than 20 countries or jurisdictions.
The military offensive launched on February 24, 2022 by Russia in Ukraine has so far caused the flight of more than 14.7 million people -6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 8.2 million to European countries-, according to the latest data from the UN, which classifies this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
At least 18 million Ukrainians need humanitarian aid and 9.3 million need food aid and shelter.
The Russian invasion – justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the wider international community, which has responded by sending arms to Ukraine and imposing them on Russia in political and economic sanctions.
The UN presented as confirmed since the beginning of the war, which this Friday entered its day 450, 8,836 civilian deaths and 14,985 wounded, stressing that these figures are far below the real ones.
Source: TSF
