Russia imposes sanctions on top U.S. officials, including Biden, Blinken

Moscow, Russia | Xinhua | The Russian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday announced sanctions on top U.S. officials, including U.S. President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

Russia’s “stop list” also includes Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, Biden’s son Hunter, and former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton among others.

Moscow made the “stop list” on the basis of reciprocity in response to a series of unprecedented sanctions prohibiting, among other things, top Russian officials from entering the United States starting Tuesday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Russia introduced the restrictions as a counter reaction to the extremely Russophobic course taken by the current U.S. administration, the ministry said, warning that the blacklist could be expanded in the future.

“At the same time, we do not refuse to maintain official relations if they meet our national interests. And, if necessary, we will solve problems arising from the status of the blacklisted persons in order to organize high-level contacts,” it added.

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Xinhua