Survivors of the Russian strike on a school in eastern Ukraine describe a horrific experience

US President Joe Biden and leaders G7 almost met With Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday they discussed additional measures the United States and its allies are taking to punish Russia for its unjustified invasion of Ukraine, which include sanctions against Russia’s three largest television channels and a commitment by each G7 member to gradually abandon the Russian language. Oil imports, according to a senior administration official and a White House fact statement.

“This is indeed a failure for Putin, and we will continue to honor the brave fight of the people of Ukraine and listen to President Zelensky and recommit to continuing the path,” the senior official told reporters before the president’s meeting. .

The official added that while today’s leaders “will take stock of where we are,” the call will also highlight how Russian President Vladimir Putin “humiliates” the sacrifices made by Soviet citizens, millions of whom gave their lives to defeat fascism in the process. World War II.

“Putin is abusing those sacrifices by spreading his lies and misinformation about the barbarism he is committing in Ukraine…This is truly an opportunity to tell the truth and prove our continued unity,” said the official on the call.

New sanctions unveiled by the United States on Sunday will cut off Kremlin-controlled media from American advertisers and production technology, prevent Russia from using U.S.-provided services such as management or corporate advisory and accounting, as well as impose new export controls against Russia. Industrial sector. Sunday’s announcement also includes nearly 2,600 visa restrictions on Russian and Belarusian officials, and the first sanctions against executives of Gazprombank – the institution through which most of Europe buys Russian gas.

Some more context: The combination of US and Western sanctions imposed since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24 has pushed the Russian economy into a deep recession as it makes the difficult transition to becoming a closed economy.

Today, the three U.S.-sanctioned TV networks — Channel One Russia, Russian TV-1 and NTV Broadcasting Company — received more than $300 million in advertising revenue from Western countries just last year, according to the official.

“We are not going to help them spread the lies and deception you hear from Putin every day,” this official said.

Not included in today’s ban on services: legal services. The US, according to the senior official, has decided to continue allowing “due process” to be sought, but the government will continue to re-evaluate this “every day” and they are waiting to see what happens after this initial action. Service ban. The official noted that the United Kingdom had not imposed such a ban.

The official also took care to note that the sanctions against Gazprombank executives are just actions against the leaders of the important financial institution and not a full penalty against the bank itself, which Europeans must deal with to continue buying Russian gas.

“This is not a complete block. We do not freeze the assets of Gazprombank or prohibit any transactions with Gazprombank. What we are pointing out is that Gazprombank is not a safe haven. And so we are sanctioning some of the big business, the people who are sitting at the head of the organization, to make a scary effect, This official said.

The senior official said the decision to restrict exports of industrial products to Russia is aimed at hampering the Kremlin’s industrial capacity and ability to wage war, similar to how Western restrictions on microchips limit Russia’s ability to make precision-guided missiles.

In addition to the export ban on Russian industrial services, the United States has also imposed sanctions on Promtekhnologiya LLC, which manufactures weapons, such as rifles, used by Russian forces in Ukraine, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will also not allow the export of uranium, plutonium, or others. Nuclear energy related products.

Correction: An earlier version of this post stated that the three TV networks that are under US sanctions today received more than $300 billion in advertising revenue from Western countries last year. The actual amount is $300 million. It has been corrected.