US imposes sanctions on 7 Russian officials

AP Barack Obama

The United States levied new sanctions on Monday on seven Russian government officials, as well as 17 companies with links to Vladimir Putin’s close associates, as the Obama administration seeks to pressure the Russian leader to deescalate the crisis in Ukraine.

The new penalties were a response to what U.S. officials said is Russia’s failure to live up to commitments it agreed to under an international accord aimed at ending the dispute.

Among the targets of the new sanctions is Igor Sechin, the president of state oil company Rosneft, who has worked for Putin since the early 1990s.

Even with the new measures, Mr. Obama voiced pessimism about whether they would be enough to change Mr. Putin’s calculus.

“We don’t yet know whether it’s going to work,” he said.

Also on the list of those sanctioned by the U.S. are Aleksei Pushkov, the Kremlin-connected head of Russian Parliament’s Lower House, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, and Sergei Chemezov, another long-time Putin ally.

The company-specific sanctions will affect entities like Transoil, a freight rail operator, and other infrastructure companies involved in electrical and gas pipeline construction. The U.S. also sanctioned two entities it alleges are owned or controlled by Bank Rossiya, which is owned by members of Mr. Putin’s inner circle.