WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On Tuesday, the United States extended its anti-Russian sanctions over Ukraine by targeting 34 individuals and entities, the US Treasury Department said in a press release.
"These additions to the SDN [Specially Designated Nationals] List and the SSI [Sectoral Sanctions Identifications] List… show that the United States is not backing down on its sanctions related to the crisis in the Ukraine," Ward told Sputnik on Tuesday.
The United States and Russia, Ward observed, have been very careful not to allow cooperation in certain areas — including the Syrian peace process, Iran nuclear deal and space initiatives — impact their standoff on Ukraine.
The expansion of the SDN and SSI lists, Ward added, also might send a signal to some EU member states that have grown weary of imposing sanctions on Russia.
"This action by the United States may be seen by those member states as a sign of the US’s solidarity in continuing the sanctions until Russia complies with international demands," Ward noted.
The sanctions targeted a number of subsidiaries of VTB Bank, Sberbank and Rostec. The sanctions also targeted 14 individuals and entities linked to Gennady Timchenko, Arkady Rotenberg, Boris Rotenberg as well as the Kalashnikov Concern and Izhevsky Mekhanichesky Zavod JSC.
The extended sanctions lists also included two former Ukrainian government officials, Vitaliy Zakharchenko and Dmytro Tabachnyk.
The United States, the European Union and their allies imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russia in 2014 over Moscow's alleged meddling in Ukraine’s internal affairs. The allegations have repeatedly been refuted by Russia.
