WASHINGTON—The United States on Wednesday, Jan. 29, issued a fresh round of sanctions related to Russia’s annexation of Crimea, targeting eight individuals and a Moscow-based railway company, the U.S. Treasury Department said.
The United States has imposed a series of sanctions in response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. Moscow has since built up military infrastructure on the peninsula.
The latest move comes a day before a visit to Ukraine by U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.
The officials blacklisted on Wednesday include Yuri Gotsanyuk, so-called prime minister of Crimea’s pro-Russian regional government after the 2019 election, and six others, a Treasury statement said.
Five of the sanctioned individuals are named high-level officials of Sevastopol, including a so-called member of the parliament of the Russian Federation representing Sevastopol, says the Treasury statement.
Also blacklisted is Moscow-based railway company Grand Service Express, which operates in the Crimea region, and its Chief Executive Officer Alexander Ganov.
Grand Service Express is a privately owned Russian railway company that started offering passenger services connecting Crimea with Russia over the Kerch Strait Bridge in December 2019. The Kerch Strait, which separates mainland Russia from Crimea, is the only outlet from the Azov Sea to the Black Sea.
The U.S. sanctions block assets of these persons and the railway company and prohibit U.S. individuals and businesses from conducting transactions with those targeted. Also, foreign persons who engage in transactions with them may face sanctions.
“Treasury’s action, taken in close coordination with our international allies and partners, reiterates our unwavering support for restoring free and fair democratic political processes in Crimea,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in the statement. These actions demonstrate “the strength of the transatlantic alliance in standing up to Russia’s continued aggression,” Mnuchin said.
The total number of people sanctioned for undermining the sovereignty of Ukraine by the EU since 2014 rose to 177 after adding these individuals.