US imposes sanctions on Russia-linked individuals, organizations

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The United States imposed new sanctions on 285 Russia-linked individuals and 11 Russia-linked organizations following the accession of liberated Ukrainian territories into Russia, the US Treasury said on Friday.

The sanctioned individuals are members of the Federation Council, the upper house of Russia's Federal Assembly, as well as Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and his family, the wife and son of Russian Security Council Deputy Chief and former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, and family members of Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, among many others.

Additionally, the US is sanctioning the upper house of the Russian Federal Assembly, the Federation Council, as part of Washington's newest onslaught of sanctions on Russia over the accession of former Ukrainian territories.

"Today OFAC designated the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation… for being a political subdivision, agency, or instrumentality of the [Government of Russia]," it said.

"Today OFAC designated the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation… for being a political subdivision, agency, or instrumentality of the [Government of Russia]," it said.

This comes over the Federation Council voting unanimously to approve Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine and supporting the popular referenda, OFAC said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the people living in the DPR, LPR, Kherson, and Zaparozhye "have become [Russian] citizens forever", recognizing that the regions have now become Russian territories after their peoples overwhelmingly voted in favor of their territories becoming part of Russia.

The US Treasury also issued guidance on Friday saying that any people from outside the United States are at risk of being sanctioned if they voice support for the referenda on the accession of Zaparozhye, Kherson, the Lugansk People's Republic, and the Donetsk People's Republic to Russia.

"Do non-U.S. persons face sanctions risk for supporting Russia following its sham referenda, purported annexation, and continued occupation of the Kherson, Zaporizhzhya, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions of Ukraine? Answer Yes," the guidance said.

57 Russian entities blacklisted

The US Department of Commerce announced on Friday that it was adding 57 Russian-based entities to its economic blacklist in its latest tranche of sanctions on Moscow over the referenda. 

"Today, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) took swift and severe action in coordination with US government partners to hold Russia accountable for its unlawful attempt to annex sovereign Ukrainian territory," the announcement said.

"Today, Commerce issued a rule that adds 57 entities located in Russia and the Crimea region of Ukraine to the Entity List for supporting the Russian military’s brutal assault on Ukraine," the Commerce Department added.

"By starting a sanctions blitzkrieg against the Russian Federation, the West believed that it could 'build' the whole world on its own command. But such a prospect excites only political masochists and fans of other non-traditional forms of international relations," Putin said earlier in the day during an address to Kremlin.

"People cannot be accumulated with printed dollars and euros, and inflated virtual capitalization cannot heat up your home. You can not feed people with papers," the Russian people said in criticism of the West's policy toward Russia.