US sanctions Russian Duma ‘in its entirety’ plus 328 members
The US State Department has announced that it is imposing sanctions on Russia’s Duma both ‘in its entirety’ and on its individual members. In a 24 March statement, the Department said,
‘President Putin’s war continues to inflict horror and widespread suffering on the people of Ukraine. At the same time, in Russia, the State Duma continues to use its legislative power to target domestic dissenters and political opponents, disrupt the free flow of information, and restrict the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the citizens of Russia. The United States today is designating 328 members of the Russian State Duma, in addition to the 12 members designated on March 11. These members supported the Kremlin’s violations of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, including through treaties recognizing the self-proclaimed independence of Russian-proxy controlled areas of eastern Ukraine, the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR) and Luhansk People’s Republic (LNR).’
It said that it is ‘also designating the Russian State Duma in its entirety, as well as Herman Gref, the head of Sberbank and a close ally of Putin’ and that the actions ‘are taken pursuant to Executive Order 14024, which authorizes sanctions against Russia for its harmful foreign activities.’
It continued, ‘As part of this action, we are also targeting multiple Russian elites to include their properties and family members. Notably, this will include 17 members of the board of PJSC Sovcombank, a designated entity. These executives join the growing list of individuals associated with blocked Russian financial institutions that now also find themselves subject to U.S. sanctions. Additionally, OOO Volga Group is being re-designated for having operated in the financial services sector of the Russian Federation economy. As a result, Gennady Nikolayevich Timchenko, the owner of OOO Volga Group, will also be re-designated along with OOO Transoil, which Timchenko owns. Timchenko’s wife, Elena Petrovna Timchenko, and daughter, Natalya Browning, will now also be designated along with Ksenia Gennadevna Frank, a board member of OOO Transoil and her spouse Gleb Sergeevich Frank.
‘Additionally, the United States is taking action to impose additional severe costs on Russia’s defense establishment. This includes designating multiple defense-related entities and one associated individual. An important component of today’s action is designating Russian defense companies that are part of Russia’s defense-industrial base and that produce weapons that have been used in Russia’s war of aggression. By cutting off dozens of Russian defense companies from the U.S. financial system, today’s action will have a deep and long-lasting effect on Russia’s defense-industrial base. We are targeting, and will continue to target, the suppliers of Russia’s war effort and, in turn, their supply chain.’
https://www.state.gov/targeting-elites-of-the-russian-federation/
