U.S. Department of State coordinator: Announcement of new sanctions expected in coming weeks

New sanctions are expected to be announced in the coming weeks to affect Russia's capabilities on the battlefield and financially, U.S. Department of State Sanctions Coordinator, Ambassador James O'Brien said.

The representative of the U.S. Department of State held an online meeting with Andriy Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, the press service of the President’s Office informs. As noted, a working group in the U.S. Department of State is currently studying in detail all the materials submitted by the Ukrainian government and the Yermack-McFaul group.

"We focus on the most important people who have propaganda influence in Russia. In particular, those who personally participated in the annexation of Ukrainian territory. People who openly support the war in Ukraine. And some of them even say how many Ukrainians should be killed, how many attacks should be carried out against civilians and civilian infrastructure," Yermak stated.

According to him, it is unacceptable that most of these people can freely visit democratic countries such as the United States, Great Britain, the European Union member states, have property in the territory of these countries and at the same time voice anti-Ukrainian propaganda on Russian television. They not only openly support the war in Ukraine, but also criticize the support of our country by partner countries, in particular the United States.

"Today it is propaganda from public people that has the greatest impact on Russian society. And if these people travel freely around the world and are fine with supporting the war and killing of Ukrainians, it is a signal to all Russians that everything is fine. It should not be so," the Head of the President’s Office emphasized.

O'Brien emphasized that the working group in the U.S. Department of State, which consists of about 30 members, is studying in detail all the materials submitted by the Ukrainian government and the Yermack-McFaul group. According to him, the work in a number of important areas is being completed, and new sanctions are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

As reported, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said Tuesday that the EU will put sanctions pressure on the Kremlin as long as it takes. She noted that sanctions will also be imposed on the countries that support Russian aggression against Ukraine, such as Belarus or Iran.

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