Obama imposes new sanctions on Russia

By Joshua Powers  03-20-14

Photo by Justin Saglio//BU News Service, Flickr

Russia’s invasion and takeover of Crimea has dominated headlines recently, and new sanctions by the United States look to add to the building tension.  

The military action has created a stir in western nations, and President Barack Obama has made the decision to impose sanctions on Russia, in response to their decision to send troops into Crimea.

President Obama condemned the actions by Vladimir Putin, and said that the United States will continue to stand by Ukraine, and the citizens of Crimea. The first sanctions, which were signed over two weeks ago, will target specific individuals who are responsible for undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

The second group of sanctions will take place against Russian officials, and entities operating in the arms section of Russia. They will also affect individuals who provide material support to senior officials of the Russian Government. 

 The President also announced that Vice President Joe Biden is traveling to Europe to meet with NATO forces and the European Union, to discuss other actions that the european countries may take against Russia if they decide not to pull out of Crimea. Brussels has already implemented sanctions at the time of print. 

The last group of sanctions promised to close off Russia from the rest of the world, and slowly diminish them as a super power.

Obama did stress that there is still a path that can be taken to resolve the situation diplomatically, in a way that would be of interest to both Russia and Ukraine. Obama also stated that this would mean Russia would have to pull out of Crimea, allow for international monitors in Ukraine, and they would have to engage in talks with the Ukrainian government.