The U.S. will announce new “consequences” Tuesday for individuals and entities tied to the attempted assassination of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, senior Biden administration officials say.
The measures specifically target multiple members of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) and 13 commercial entities linked to both the assassination attempt itself and the production of the nerve agent used against Navalny. Nine of those commercial entities are Russian, three are German and one is Swiss in origin. The measures from the Biden administration include “mirroring” sanctions levied by the European Union both in October and new designations to be announced later Tuesday. (RELATED: Biden Urged Putin To Immediately Release Alexei Navalny)
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is seen at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport upon the arrival from Berlin on January 17, 2021. – Russian police detained Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny at a Moscow airport shortly after he landed on a flight from Berlin, an AFP journalist at the scene said. (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)
The Biden officials confirmed that the list of designees includes members of the Russian government that Navalny’s supporters previously called to be sanctioned by the international community. The full list of names has not been publicized yet.
They also told reporters that Tuesday’s announcement is the first of four targeted responses to a “pattern” of behavior by the Kremlin, which will include the SolarWinds hack in 2020. Responding to a question from reporters about the perceived “symbolic” nature of the E.U.’s sanctions, the officials added that the administration is reserving the right to levy additional actions and that the imminent announcement is needed to bring the U.S. back into step with its allies on the issue.
President Joe Biden allegedly told Russian President Vladimir Putin to release Navalny when the pair spoke for the first time after Biden’s inauguration. Russia arrested Navalny immediately upon his return to the country in January, prompting sweeping protests — and thousands of additional arrests — across Russia in the subsequent weeks.
This is a developing story and will be updated with more information as it becomes available.