U.S. to sanction over 300 Russian elites and block Russian central bank gold

U.S. to sanction over 300 Russian elites and block Russian central bank gold


U.S. President Joe Biden announces new actions against Russia for its war in Ukraine, during remarks in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 8, 2022.

Kevin Lamarque | Reuters

The United States plans to sanction approximately 400 Russian individuals and entities, including more than 300 lawmakers from the Russian lower house of parliament, the Duma and Russian elites, a senior Biden administration official said Thursday.

As Russia’s unprovoked and increasingly brutal invasion of Ukraine enters its second month Thursday, the G-7 group of major economies and the European Union will also announce new measures to crack down on Russian efforts to evade current sanctions, including those on its central bank.

The EU and G-7 will also inform international organizations that from this point forward, they are no longer to operate within Russia under “business as usual” standards, said the official, who requested anonymity in order to preview announcements that had not yet been made public.

“Our purpose here is to methodically remove the benefits and privileges Russia once enjoyed as a participant in the international economic order,” said the official.

President Joe Biden will announce the measures during a speech before NATO on Thursday, the first of three major addresses he will deliver during his day in Brussels.

Biden will also announce a new set of American efforts to aid the Ukrainian people, said the senior White House aide.

Chief among them, the United States is “prepared to provide more than $1 billion in new funding towards humanitarian assistance for those affected by Russia’s war in Ukraine and its severe impacts around the world,” said the official, without detailing how or when the money would be spent.

Biden will also announce a new commitment of funds to help protect global food security, which has been thrown into chaos by Russia’s invasion because both Moscow and Kyiv are some of the world’s largest exporters of grain.

Through the U.S. government’s Feed the Future initiative, the Biden administration will provide $11 billion over the next 5 years to address threats to food security and prevent malnutrition, the official said.

The lion’s share of Ukraine’s grain exports currently go to Africa and Asia, and the American funds will be deployed to many of the countries where the population is especially vulnerable to a rise in food prices.



Source

How ‘Daddy’ talk and Trump and Rutte’s bromance stole the NATO spotlight
World

How ‘Daddy’ talk and Trump and Rutte’s bromance stole the NATO spotlight

US President Donald Trump (R), German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (L,up), NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (L) and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (R, up) gather for a family photo before a plenary session of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Heads of State and Government summit in The Hague, on June 25, 2025. Christian Hartmann […]

Read More
H&M shares jump 5% as summer shopping pick-up seen after weaker-than-expected quarterly sales
World

H&M shares jump 5% as summer shopping pick-up seen after weaker-than-expected quarterly sales

A close-up view of the illuminated red H&M logo in front of a display of women’s summer dresses and casual apparel at a retail store. Cheng Xin | Getty Images News | Getty Images Swedish clothing giant H&M on Thursday reported weaker-than-expected sales in the fiscal second quarter but pointed to an uptick in demand to […]

Read More
CNBC Daily Open: Funny how the S&P 500 is teasing a new high amid uncertainties
World

CNBC Daily Open: Funny how the S&P 500 is teasing a new high amid uncertainties

Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on June 25, 2025. NYSE Have we gone back in time? It certainly seems on the markets front. Just look at the S&P 500 and you will think that it’s back in February — before U.S. President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, before the White House’s “One Big […]

Read More