Biden Announces First Tranche Of Sanctions On Russia

U.S. President Joe Biden has announced the first tranche of sanctions on Russia.

Gatekeepers News reports that this announcement is a slew of retaliatory sanctions aimed at Russian financial institutions, Moscow’s sovereign debt as well as Russian elites and their family members.

Biden made this announcement while referencing the Kremlin’s continued aggression against Ukraine in a Tuesday address from the White House.

The U.S. President said, “We are implementing full-blockage sanctions on two large Russian financial institutions, the VEB and their military bank. We are also implementing comprehensive sanctions on Russian sovereign debt.”

He stated that the sanctions imposed on Russia’s sovereign debt will effectively remove the Kremlin from Western financial markets.

Biden added that in the coming days his administration will also impose sanctions on Russian elites and their family members as they benefit from the Kremlin’s maligned behavior.

The sanctions follows Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to recognise the independence of two breakaway regions of eastern Ukraine.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and European allies have warned that Putin’s recognition of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic could serve as a possible prelude to a Russian invasion.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Russian government granted Putin permission to deploy Russian forces outside of the country’s borders.

Biden during his address said, “He’s setting up a rationale to go much further. This is the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.”

While vowing to defend “every inch of NATO territory,” Biden said “I’ve authorized additional movements of U.S. forces and equipment already stationed in Europe to strengthen our Baltic allies, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Let me be clear, these are totally defensive moves on our part. We have no intention of fighting Russia.”

He added that the U.S. and European allies were still hopeful for a diplomatic resolution to the crisis.

Biden added “I’m going to take robust action to make sure the pain of our sanctions is targeted at [the] Russian economy, not ours.”

“We’re closely monitoring energy supplies for any disruption. We’re executing a plan in coordination with major oil-producing consumers and producers toward a collective investment to secure stability in global energy supplies,” the president said. “This will blunt gas prices.”

“I want to limit the pain the American people are feeling at the gas pump,” Biden said. “This is critical to me.”

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has met with Ukraine’s foreign minister to reaffirm the United States’ commitments to Kyiv and its readiness to respond “swiftly and decisively to further Russian aggression.”