WASHINGTON: The United States on Thursday imposed a broad array of sanctions on Russia to punish it for alleged interference in the U.S. election, cyber-hacking, bullying Ukraine and other "malign" acts.
The measures blacklisted Russian companies, expelled Russian diplomats and placed limits on the Russian sovereign debt market. More penalties could come, although Washington did not want to escalate matters, the Biden administration said.
Moscow reacted angrily, saying this dangerously raised the temperature between the two countries. It summoned the U.S. ambassador for what it said would be a tough conversation.
Among the actions, President Joe Biden issue an executive order authorizing the U.S. government to sanction any sector of the Russian economy and used it to restrict Russia's ability to issue sovereign debt to punish Moscow for interfering in the 2020 U.S. election.
Biden barred U.S. financial institutions from taking part in the primary market for rouble-denominated Russian sovereign bonds from June 14. U.S. banks have been barred from taking part in the primary market for non-rouble sovereign bonds since 2019.
The U.S. Treasury also blacklisted 32 entities and individuals which it said had carried out Russian government-directed attempts to influence the 2020 U.S. presidential election and other "acts of disinformation and interference".
In concert with the European Union, Britain, Australia and Canada, the Treasury also sanctioned eight individuals associated with Russia's ongoing occupation and repression in Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
The Kremlin, speaking ahead of the publication of the executive order, said the sanctions would reduce the chances of a summit between Biden and President Vladimir Putin taking place.
Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman said Moscow would respond to the sanctions in the near future.
Russia denies meddling in U.S. elections and orchestrating a cyber hack that used U.S. tech company SolarWinds Corp SWI.N to penetrate U.S. government networks. It also denies using a nerve agent to poison Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
It has also brushed off allegations that it put bounties on U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
The White House said it was expelling 10 Russian diplomats in Washington D.C., including representatives of the Russian intelligence services and for the first time, formally named the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) as the perpetrator of the SolarWinds Corp hack.
Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, described the sanctions as "proportionate measures to defend American interests in response to harmful russian actions".
"His (Biden's) goal is to provide a significant and credible response but not to escalate the situation," Sullivan told CNN.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner said the sanctions were a "good first step" to showing that such actions were not acceptable.
"The scale and scope of this hack are beyond any that we’ve seen before, and (the sanctions) should make clear that we will hold Russia and other adversaries accountable for committing this kind of malicious cyber activity against American targets," he said in a statement.
The actions initially sent the Russian rouble down more than 2% against the dollar and to a more than five-month low against the euro before clawing back some losses.
Reuters
Thu Apr 15 2021
The United States on Thursday imposed a broad array of sanctions on Russia to punish it for alleged interference in the U.S. election, cyber-hacking, bullying Ukraine and other "malign" acts. - REUTERS pic
Polis geledah pejabat pemimpin Parlimen Eropah di Brussels
Pihak berkuasa Jerman melakukan penggeledahan di pejabat seorang ahli Parlimen Eropah di Brussels pada Selasa.
Kereta Safiq Rahim diserang dua lelaki bermotosikal
Selang dua hari selepas pemain Selangor FC Faisal Halim diserang, Safiq Rahim pula ditimpa malang apabila cermin keretanya dipecahkan menggunakan tukul besi.
Balu Navalny gesa rakyat Rusia tidak putus asa
Balu kepada pemimpin pembangkang Rusia Alexei Navalny, Yulia Navalnaya menggesa rakyat negara itu supaya tidak berputus asa memerangi rejim selepas pelantikan Vladimir Putin.
Perhimpunan Agung PBB mengundi Jumaat ini
Ia secara berkesan akan bertindak sebagai tinjauan global mengenai berapa banyak sokongan rakyat Palestin terhadap bidaan mereka, yang telah diveto dalam Majlis Keselamatan PBB bulan lalu oleh Amerika Syarikat.
Serangan di Rafah satu kesilapan, malapetaka kemanusiaan - PBB
Setiausaha Agung PBB Antonio Guterres pada Selasa memberi amaran kepada Israel bahawa serangan ke atas Rafah akan menjadi kesilapan strategik, bencana politik dan kemanusian.
Kehadiran Agong ke Parlimen kukuhkan lagi hubungan dua hala
Di bawah pemerintahan Yang Di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Ibrahim selaku Sultan Negeri Johor, hubungan negeri itu dengan Singapura semakin kukuh.
Ia dapat dilihat dari segi ekonomi dan hubungan antara rakyat.
Ia dapat dilihat dari segi ekonomi dan hubungan antara rakyat.
Vladimir Putin angkat sumpah sebagai Presiden bagi penggal kelima
Majlis angkat sumpah itu diadakan di Kremlin dengan diboikot Amerika Syarikat dan beberapa negara barat lain susulan perang antara Rusia-Ukraine.
Cuaca panas undang stres kalangan jemaah wanita
Dalam keadaan cuaca panas melampau dan untuk tempoh yang lama, ia boleh mengundang kepada stres atau tekanan sehingga berupaya menjejaskan kesihatan mental jemaah wanita yang menerima tawaran sebagai tetamu Allah di musim haji.
Mesyuarat JKKTN setuju perkukuh kawal selia BBP
Mesyuarat Jawatankuasa Khas Kabinet Tatakelola Nasional (JKKTN) yang bersidang hari ini bersetuju dengan cadangan memperkukuh kawal selia Badan Berkanun Persekutuan (BBP) melalui penggubalan akta.
Usaha bersepadu penting untuk mengekang jenayah
Usaha bersepadu di kalangan agensi-agensi dari pelbagai bidang adalah penting untuk mengekalkan kerangka keselamatan global, kata Menteri Dalam Negeri Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
Beliau menyatakan bahawa akses internet dan kemajuan teknologi telah membawa ancaman baru dan mengubah landskap keselamatan, oleh itu perlunya pendekatan yang bersatu padu untuk menangani mereka.
Beliau menyatakan bahawa akses internet dan kemajuan teknologi telah membawa ancaman baru dan mengubah landskap keselamatan, oleh itu perlunya pendekatan yang bersatu padu untuk menangani mereka.
COVID-19: Vaksin tetap beri perlindungan walau keberkesanan rendah terhadap mutasi baharu
Pakar penyakit berjangkit terkemuka Amerika Syarikat, Dr Anthony Fauci memberi saranan, bagi memastikan vaksin tersebut lebih berkesan, bilangan orang yang divaksin perlu ditingkatkan.
1MDB: Goldman Sachs potong pampasan tahunan CEOnya sebanyak RM70 juta
Lembaga syarikat turut mengekalkan gaji Solomon untuk tahun ini.
US poised to hit 16 million COVID-19 cases within days even as vaccine begins rollout
The United States is poised to hit a record 16 million COVID-19 cases in the coming days and deaths are closing in on the 300,000 mark.
Bintang US MasterChef Junior, Ben Watkins meninggal dunia pada usia 14 tahun
Bintang program realiti TV US MasterChef Junior, Ben Watkins dilaporkan meninggal dunia akibat penyakit kanser pada usia 14 tahun.
Berita antarabangsa pilihan sepanjang hari ini
Antara pelbagai berita antarabangsa yang disiarkan di Astro AWANI, berikut adalah antara yang paling menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari ini.
1MDB bayar US$681 juta kepada syarikat Aabar lain - Saksi
Shahrol Azral berkata pengarah juga tidak memberi sebarang persetujuan bagi pembayaran tersebut dikeluarkan daripada 1MDB Energy Holdings Limited kepada Aabar Seychelles.
Anak Beyonce, Blue Ivy tercalon Anugerah BET
Difahamkan, Blue Ivy Carter bakal bersaing bersama nama-nama tersohor yang lain seperti Lizzo, Alicia Keys, Lupita Nyongo, Missy Elliot, Ciara dan ramai lagi.
Insentif pemandu pelancong Johor cerminan keprihatinan kerajaan negeri
Pandemik COVID-19 telah melumpuhkan sektor pelancongan global dan Malaysia juga tidak terkecuali.
Bursa Malaysia di paras terendah sejak lebih 12 tahun
Bursa Malaysia mencecah tahap terendah pada 1,320.96 mata semasa dagangan Jumaat.
Jual pesawat khas presiden melalui loteri US$6 juta
Presiden Mexico yang baharu, Andres Manuel Lpez Obrador membuat kejutan apabila membuat pengumuman untuk menjual pesawat khas presiden melalui cabutan loteri.