US, G7 to unveil new major Russia sanctions near February 24: Nuland

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The United States and the Group of Seven (G7) are planning on introducing another "big" sanction package on Russia around the first anniversary of the Ukraine war on February 24, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said Thursday.

"I think you will see around the 24th [of February] a big new package of sanctions from both the US and from all of our G7 partners," Nuland said.

"These sanctions will deepen and broaden in certain categories where we have been active before, particularly in limiting the flow of technology to the Russian defense industry, high-tech equipment, etc., to sanctioning those individuals who are directly involved in prosecuting this war and supporting it," the US diplomat told a press briefing.

Going into details, Nuland explained that the US and its G7 allies were going to broaden banking sanctions on Russia while going on to introduce further export controls in their upcoming announcement.

"We are also broadening banking sanctions, we're going to broaden our export controls, which will capture much of the illicit trade, and, particularly, we are targeting areas of concern and countries that are helping Russia evade sanctions," she added.

Top Russian diplomat Alexander Grushko underlined back in December 2022 that sanctions against Russia would only backfire. 

"They [EU states] are abandoning market principles — in energy, finance, and in many other areas. This is their choice. But this choice, when implemented in concrete actions, undermines international economic relations in the form, in which they have been formed in recent years, and undermines the economic interests of these countries," Grushko said.

The official went on to say that it is obvious that the United States benefits from all of these sanctions, stressing that Russia will implement policies to secure its economic interests.

After the adoption of several packages of sanctions against Moscow by the West, western sanctions backfired, having detrimental effects on the world's global markets, most notably gas, and oil. European governments are now suffering the repercussions of their sanctions amid rising strikes and protests over the cost of living and pay.

Moreover, Politico reported Monday that the European Union would adopt new sanctions against Russia on Monday, which were said to include four more banks and 130 individuals and entities.

The new package could potentially include a ban on the import of rubber and bitumen from Russia, as well as the export of a number of goods to Russia, including trucks and heavy vehicles used in construction, according to Politico.

Last month, the European Union intensified its work on the 10th sanctions package against Russia, with Poland proposing the imposition of new measures and strengthening existing ones, according to the Polish Ambassador to the EU, Andrzej Sados.

The new package of sanctions aims to expand the list of sanctioned individuals and organizations and add diamonds to the list of sanctioned Russian exports. 

Nuland also stressed that the Biden administration would support Kiev's fight to "return [...] all its land" within international borders. Furthermore, Nuland said the Biden administration was already supporting Kiev in its preparation for its next "hard push" to "regain its territory."

"President has said that we will support Ukraine for as long as it takes. Ukraine is fighting for the return of all of its land within its international borders. We are supporting them, including in preparing the next hard push to regain their territory," she added during the briefing.

Earlier on Thursday Politico reported that US State Secretary Antony Blinken on Wednesday said in a video call with experts that the United States is not actively encouraging Ukraine to retake control of Crimea, but the decision is Kiev’s alone.

According to the report, the US administration’s main focus is to assist Ukraine in Donbass.

After someone on the call asked if Washington was willing to assist Ukraine in seizing Russia's Crimea, Blinken considered that this would represent a red line for Russian President Vladimir Putin that could provoke a wider response from Moscow.

 Crimea became part of Russia following a referendum held in March 2014, in which nearly 96% of Crimeans voted for accession to Russia.

While Ukraine still considers the peninsula to be its own territory, Russia has repeatedly stressed that the decision made by the Crimean people was in full compliance with international law and the UN Charter.

In early February, Politico also reported that four senior US Defense Department officials told House Armed Services Committee lawmakers during a classified briefing that Ukrainian forces are unlikely to be able to recapture Crimea from Russian troops in the near future.

The report indicated that there are no clear indicators as to what led the briefers to that assessment, but three people with direct knowledge of the briefing indicated that the Pentagon does not believe Ukraine has the capabilities to force Russian troops out of the peninsula.