The U.S. Sanctions 34 Individuals and Entities in Relation to the Ukraine Crisis

On Tuesday, December 22, the United States added 34 individuals and entities to its sanctions list that have been involved directly or indirectly in the conflicts in Eastern Ukraine, including the annexation of Crimea. The Kremlin reacted to this U.S. decision, labeling it a continuation of Washington's 'unfriendly' behavior. Moscow stated that Russia would retaliate against this U.S. action. The new U.S. sanctions came a day after the European Union decided to extend its sanctions against Russia. According to the Associated Press, the list published by the U.S. Treasury includes several companies that are all connected to traders close to Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia. Notable individuals on this list include Gennady Timchenko, an oil trader, and the Rotenberg brothers, Putin's judo partners, who manage several large industrial companies with billions of dollars in capital. Previous sanctions were imposed by the U.S. when Russia annexed Crimea in March 2014. The U.S. Treasury stated that sanctions would be lifted if Russia complies with the Minsk peace agreement and returns control of the occupied areas to Ukraine. Federica Mogherini, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, stated in a statement issued last March that the 28 EU member states do not recognize the annexation of Crimea and continue to condemn this action as a violation of international law. This official also mentioned that the EU is committed to the policy of non-recognition of the annexation of Crimea. The new sanctions list includes several officials from the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk republics, such as Sergey Siblakov and Vasily Nikitin, who hold the titles of Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Donbas. The U.S. Treasury has also added former officials linked to the government of Viktor Yanukovych, who was overthrown two years ago after months of protests in Kyiv. Among those on the U.S. Treasury sanctions list is Vitaly Zakharchenko, the former Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, who is said to have allowed police to shoot at protesters. Since April 2014, over 9,000 people have been killed in the conflict between the government and Russian-backed separatists.