The U.S. government on Thursday imposed a new set of sanctions against individuals and entities in Russia, including some aimed at limiting the room for maneuver of the Wagner Group, a mercenary company aligned with the Kremlin and in Washington’s eyes a transnational criminal organization.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has stressed that Joe Biden’s Administration is «steadfast» in its efforts to hold Russia accountable for its «aggression» over Ukraine and, more generally, for its «destabilizing behavior» around the world.
«Today’s designations will further limit the Kremlin’s ability to weaponize its war machine, (…) which has caused unconscionable death and destruction,» the head of U.S. diplomacy lamented in a statement.
For her part, the Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen, emphasized that, as international punishments against Russia continue to take their toll, «the Kremlin is desperately seeking weapons and support», allying itself with and even depending on the Wagner Group to make progress on the Ukrainian front line, where an «unjust war» is being waged.
In the case of the Wagner Group, the US ‘blacklist’ is extended with entities and individuals linked to this organization or to its leader, Yevgeni Prigozhin, not only in the Ukrainian scenario, but also in other countries where the firm would have gained presence such as Central African Republic or Mali. In Africa, «mass executions, rapes, child abductions and physical abuses» are attributed to it.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has also confirmed the punishment of Denis Manturov, Russia’s Minister of Industry and Trade, and of the President of the Republic of Tatarstan, Rustam Minijanov, as well as his wife.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
