Ukraine: Biden sanctions two major Russian banks and Putin's daughters

US President Joe Biden, c Wednesday April 6, 2022 in Washington.

AP - Carolyn Kaster

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

A new set of sanctions against Russia.

Joe Biden had announced it at the start of the week, it is a question of reacting to the macabre discoveries of Boutcha and of making the cost of the war a little higher for the Russian leaders and their relatives.

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With our correspondent in Washington,

Prior to the invasion, US officials had explained that they would start directly at the top of the punitive ladder.

The White House also points out that so far, the sanctions were already the strongest ever imposed on a country in history.

But it is obviously still possible to do harder.

More devastating, even explains the press release from the presidency.

In concrete terms, Russia's largest financial institution and the country's largest private bank will have their assets related to the United States completely blocked, which implies that this was not yet the case.

All new US investment in Russia is also prohibited, to isolate Russia from the global economy.

It must be said that more than 600 multinationals have already decided to leave the country.

►Read again: Why Russia is getting closer to default

There are also personal measures.

They concern Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Michoustin and former president and head of government Dmitry Medvedev.

Vladimir Putin and his loyal Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov were already subject to measures.

They are now extended to their family, and in particular to the two adult daughters of the master of the Kremlin.

The latter are suspected, in the United States, of serving as others as nominees for their father, whose fortune and possessions remain very difficult to assess and trace.

Sanctions: what about the United States' partners?

The new American sanctions were to be decided in coordination with the G7 and the European Union.

In the wake of Washington's announcements, London has also announced a ban on all investment in Russia, sanctions in the finance and energy sectors, as well as the oligarchs.

The objective, according to the head of British diplomacy Liz Truss, consists in “ 

 ” of the president of the Russian Federation.

" 

 ," the statement read.

The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, estimated on Wednesday that the EU should "

" engage and take sanctions on Russian oil and gas.

Italy " 

 ", and in particular a possible gas embargo, " 

 ", for his part assured Prime Minister Mario Draghi.

However, the Union's diplomats have so far not reached an agreement between them for a fifth set of sanctions, as proposed by the Commission on Tuesday.

Blame it on technical issues, including that of the impact on current coal contracts, according to three sources mentioned by Reuters.

While European diplomats say they are optimistic about the possibility of a compromise by the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Member States to the EU (Coreper) on Thursday, the

reflects all the difficulty for the Member States, divided between them on the Russian question, and for many dependent on their energy imports.

With agencies

© RFI

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• United States

• Joe Biden

• Russia

• Vladimir Poutine

• Ukraine