By Daphne Psaledakis and David Brunnstrom
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Wednesday imposed hundreds of sanctions targeting Russia, seeking to increase pressure on Moscow in the final days of the Biden administration and protect other sanctions previously imposed.
The US Department and Treasury have imposed sanctions on more than 250 targets, including some based in China, targeting Russia's evasion of US sanctions and its military base.
As part of the action, the Treasury imposed new limits on nearly 100 institutions that were already subject to sanctions, which could complicate any future efforts to remove the measures.
The Russian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Treasury said in a statement that Washington is imposing new sanctions on about 100 key Russian institutions – including Russian banks and companies operating in Russia's energy sector – that were previously sanctioned by the United States. It said the move increased the risk of secondary sanctions against them.
The new sanctions were issued under an executive order that said a senior Treasury official requires Congress to be notified before any actions are reversed.
Jeremy Paner, a partner at the law firm Hughes Hubbard & Reed, said the actions were “confirmed by Trump,” preventing the modification of additional sanctions without the approval of Congress.
“You can't just go away with the stroke of a pen and undo what is being done,” he said.
Edward Fishman, a former US official who is now a research student at Columbia University, called it “a very important act.”
“It protects these sanctions against any frivolous decision to remove them,” he said. “It gives the new Trump administration more leverage with Russia.”
Trump's transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
It is not clear how Donald Trump, who succeeded President Joe Biden on Monday, will view the issue of sanctions against Russia. Trump has been friendly with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the past and said on Monday he would aim to meet with him soon to discuss Ukraine.
When asked about his plan to end the war, Trump told Newsmax: “Well, there's only one plan and it's up to Putin and I don't think he's very happy with the way it went because it didn't go well for him.” even.”
PENALTIES AVOIDANCE PLAN
Washington has also taken action against a scheme to avoid sanctions established between Russian and Chinese players, targeting regional clearing platforms in the two countries that have worked to allow cross-border payments of sensitive goods. The Treasury said many Russian banks under US sanctions are participants.
“China firmly opposes any illegal sanctions and 'long-arm' rule,” Liu Pengyu, a spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said in a statement.
“The normal economic and trade exchanges between China and Russia should not be disrupted or interrupted, and should not be used as a tool to flatter and contain China.”
Also hit with sanctions on Wednesday was Keremet Bank, a financial institution the Kyrgyzstan Treasury has accused of coordinating with Russian officials and a bank identified by the United States as a sanctions dodger.
Keremet Bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The US State Department also imposed sanctions on Russia's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe's largest.
The factory, located in southeastern Ukraine, was seized by Russia shortly after it launched its offensive in 2022. It is closed but requires external power to keep its nuclear reactors cool and prevent meltdowns.
The sanctions will not affect its operations, Russian news agencies reported on Wednesday, citing a plant spokesman.
The Biden administration has imposed punitive measures targeting Russia for its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine that killed or injured thousands and reduced cities to rubble. Washington has repeatedly sought to counter the evasion of its measures.
Less than a week ago, the administration imposed the most comprehensive package of sanctions to date targeting Russian oil and gas revenues in an effort to give Kyiv and the Trump administration less leverage to reach a peace deal in Ukraine.