US imposes new sanctions seeking to curtail Russia's war supplies

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The Biden administration imposed a wave of new sanctions across multiple countries on Thursday that seek to curtail the Kremlin's ability to import supplies critical to its war effort against Ukraine.

The US and its allies have sought to close Russia off to vital technologies and materials necessary to the war effort, and the sanctions from the State and Treasury Departments target entities in Russia, the Kyrgyz Republic, Serbia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

“Today’s actions represent another step in our efforts to constrain Russia’s military capabilities, its access to battlefield supplies, and its economic bottom line,” Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in a statement. “As long as Russia continues to wage its unprovoked and brutal war against Ukraine, we will impose sanctions to deprive Russia of the technology it needs and disrupt the Russian arms industry’s ability to resupply.”

The Treasury said entities in the Kyrgyz Republic "have been frequent exporters of controlled electronics components and other technology to Russia" since Moscow began its war against Ukraine in February 2022.

Businesses and individuals in the country that have been placed on the US blacklist include LLC RM Design and Development, a firm founded in 2022 that sells electronic and telecommunication equipment and parts.

The Treasury said the company "has been a prolific shipper of dual-use goods to Russia, including to firms that have supplied electronics to Russia-based defense companies."

Also sanctioned is Limited Liability Company Siaisi, a Russia-based company, and its Russian owner, Tatyana Grigoryevna Ivanova. Ivanova also owns sanctioned Kyrgyz Republic firm OSOO Progress Lider, also erected in 2022, which she uses to make shipments to Siaisi, the Treasury said.

Kyrgyz entities ZAO GTME Tekhnologii and OSOO Kargolayn are also being blacklisted. Kargolayn is accused of shipping millions of dollars worth of foreign-made aviation equipment to Russia in defiance of standing export controls while ZAO allegedly sent dozens of shipments of critical materials, including tantalum capacitors and electronic integrated circuits.

Amegino FZE, a UAE-based engineering company, is being sanctioned for also sending dozens of shipments to Russia since the war began, including critical integrated circutis, the Treasury said.

Serbia-based MCI Trading DOO Beograd Palilula and its director, Ivan Cvetic, are being sanctioned for allegedly serving as intermediaries for high-tech items produced in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The Treasury said Limited Liability Company AK Microtech, another sanctioned entity based in Russia, used MCI Trading to acquire dozens of shipments.

Nearly 120 entities, including over a dozen ships, as well as energy and shipping firms, are being hit with economic penalties as part of the coordinated action by the Treasury and State Departments.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the actions "will restrict Russia from accessing critical materials, inhibit its future energy production and export capabilities, curtail its use of the international financial system, and crack down on those complicit in sanctions evasion and circumvention."

"Since Russia launched its full scale invasion of Ukraine, the United States, working with our allies and partners, has taken unprecedented steps to impose costs on Russia and promote accountability for the individuals and entities who support its illegal war. We will continue to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," he said.