Biden Announces More Sanctions, New Export Controls on Russia

President Joe Biden on Feb. 24 announced several new sanctions and export control actions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. In remarks at the White House, Biden promised that the sanctions would impose "severe costs on the Russian economy immediately" and are designed to "maximize the long-term impact on Russia." He said four more major Russian banks, including VTB, would be sanctioned along with Russian state-owned enterprises and that additional Russian officials would be added to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list.

The U.S., in coordination with the EU, U.K., Japan, Canada, and others, will "squeeze" Russian access to global technology through a package designed to cut more than half of Russian high-tech imports that will degrade Russian military financing and be a "major hit to long-term strategic ambitions," Biden said. Coordinated sanctions will also limit Russia's ability to do business in multiple currencies to impair its ability to compete economically and technologically, he said. Biden vowed that the U.S. and others will "keep up this drumbeat... in the days ahead."

Biden also said that personally sanctioning Putin is on the table and that the U.S. and allies are in talks with India and other countries to further limit Russian financial and technological access to the rest of the world.