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US sanctions to hit Russia's military & Putin's close allies

Iran Press TV

Sun Apr 27, 2014 4:32PM GMT

The US says the next round of US-led sanctions against Russia over the crisis in Ukraine will target the Russian defense industry as well as the people who are close to the country's President Vladimir Putin.

The US Deputy national security adviser Tony Blinken says sanctions already in place are projected to push the Russian economy into negative growth.

Blinken said the new sanctions will start "this week in coordination with our allies and partners."

"We'll be exerting additional pressure on the people closest to him (Putin), the companies they control, the defense industry. All of this."

US President Barack Obama had earlier threatened Russia with tougher sanctions saying that they are "teed up and ready to go … in days not weeks."

Obama, however, acknowledged that the sanctions could be ineffective. "I understand that additional sanctions may not change Mr. Putin's calculus."

"So far the evidence doesn't make me hopeful … assuming they don't follow through, then we'll follow through on what we said … tighter consequences on the Russians."

"We have been preparing for the prospect that we have to engage in further sanctions. Those are teed up … the fact I haven't announced them yet, doesn't mean they aren't teed up and ready to go," Obama added.

Putin on his part acknowledged that the sanctions were hurting the Russian economy but that the damage was not critical. He also called the sanctions "dishonorable".

"Overall they are causing (damage), because (credit) ratings are being reviewed, loans could become more expensive and so forth. But this is of no critical character … Overall they are harmful for everyone, they destroy the global economy, are dishonorable on the part of those who use those types of tools."

Washington has accused Russia of failing to abide by the diplomatic agreement reached on April 17th between Ukraine, Russia, the US and the EU in Geneva that sought to deescalate tensions in Ukraine.

Russian, on the other hand, accused Ukraine's interim government of violating the agreement struck. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said "those who seized power in Kiev are grossly breaching the agreement reached in Geneva."

DDB/DDB