Japan, US Expand Sanctions against Russia

By Staff, Agencies

The Japanese Ministry of Finance announced on Friday it will impose sanctions on and freeze the assets of 17 more Russian individuals, including billionaire Viktor Vekselberg. This brings the total number of Russians sanctioned by the country in the wake of the conflict in Ukraine to 61.

Apart from the billionaire, Japan sanctioned 11 members of the Duma, the lower chamber of the Russian parliament, and five family members of banker Yury Kovalchuk, acting in line with other states from the Group of Seven [G7].

“As for sanctions hereafter, we’ll continue to watch conditions and, along with other G7 nations, respond appropriately,” government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno said during a press conference.

Tokyo has also announced that it will widen its export ban list, including 31 more items such as communications equipment and semiconductors, as well as 26 technology packages.

Japan previously imposed sanctions on the Russian central bank and seven private banks, as well as an array of Belarusian organizations, banks, and individuals for the country’s support of the Russian offensive in Ukraine.

Earlier on Monday, the US State Department expanded its list of sanctioned Russian individuals by including 11 senior officials linked to the military sector, including eight Ministry of Defense representatives and the head of National Guard [Rosgvardia], Viktor Zolotov.

The Russian army and its Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republic allies launched a military operation aimed at demilitarizing Ukraine on 24 February after weeks of escalating Ukrainian shelling, sabotage and sniper attacks on Donbass cities. The operation was started three days after Russia moved to recognize the self-proclaimed Donbass republics as independent states. Last week, the Russian Defense Ministry recovered and published documents it said served as evidence of Ukrainian plans to kick off a full-scale offensive in the Donbass starting in March.

The conflict in the Donbass began in the spring of 2014, when Kiev sent troops to try to crush a fledgling independence movement which arose in the aftermath of a Western-backed coup d'etat in Kiev. Over 14,000 people have been killed in the Donbass conflict over the past eight years, with Russian and European efforts to force Kiev to end the conflict diplomatically failing to bear fruit, and Ukraine's leaders refusing to provide constitutionally-guaranteed autonomy to the breakaway regions in exchange for their return to Kiev's jurisdiction.