by Elad Benari
White House confirms US will sanction Russian President, Foreign Minister and other members of the Russian National Security team.
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White House press secretary Jen Psaki confirmed in a briefing on Friday that the US will join with European allies to impose sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and other members of the Russian National Security team.
The sanctions against Putin and Lavrov would include a travel ban, she said.
Earlier, two people familiar with the decision told CNN that the US is planning to impose sanctions on Putin as soon as Friday.
The European Union announced earlier on Friday it would freeze the assets of Putin and Lavrov.
EU ministers said that even further sanctions were still possible, including booting Russia off SWIFT, the dominant system for global financial transactions.
“The debate about SWIFT is not off the table, it will continue,” Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson followed the EU and also announced on Friday that the UK will be implementing sanctions against Putin and Lavrov effective immediately.
US President Joe Biden said on Thursday that sanctioning Putin had been an option under consideration, telling CNN's Kaitlan Collins it was "on the table."
Biden on Thursday announced sweeping sanctions targeting Russia, enacting penalties across industries, including asset freezes for the largest banks, debt and equity restrictions on critical mining, transportation and logistics firms and a large-scale effort to shut down access to critical technology for key Russian military and industrial sectors.
Psaki also warned in her remarks on Friday that “going after the head of state would be a significant, horrific act by Russian leadership,” as Moscow closes in on Kyiv where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is holed up.
She added that Biden remains in contact with Zelensky, that the two had spoken earlier on Friday and that the Ukrainian President plans on remaining in the country.
Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova blasted the imposition of sanctions against Putin and Lavrov, saying the move reflect the West's "absolute impotence" when it comes to foreign policy.
She added that relations with the West "have reached the line after which the point of no return begins".
Zakharova spoke before the US announced sanctions against the two men.
Elad Benari
Source: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/322924
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