US cracks down on Russia sanctions evasion

PHOTO CAPTION: A view shows a bronze seal beside a door at the U.S. Treasury building in Washington, U.S., January 20, 2023.  REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

By Daphne Psaledakis and Simon Lewis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States imposed sanctions on Wednesday on hundreds of targets in fresh action against Russia, a signal the U.S. will continue to counter evasion of its measures imposed over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

The action, taken by the U.S. Treasury and State departments, imposed sanctions on nearly 400 entities and individuals from more than a dozen different countries, according to statements from the departments.

The action was the most concerted push so far against third-country evasion, a State Department official told Reuters. It included sanctions on dozens of Chinese, Hong Kong and Indian companies, the most from those countries to be hit in one package so far, according to the official.

Also hit with sanctions were targets in Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Thailand, Malaysia, Switzerland and elsewhere.

The action comes as Washington has sought to curb Russia's evasion of the sanctions imposed after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which has killed or wounded thousands and reduced cities to rubble.

"This should send a serious message to both the governments and the private sectors of these countries that the U.S. government is committed to countering the evasion of our sanctions against Russia and to continue putting pressure on Russia to end its war in Ukraine," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on 274 targets, while the State Department designated more than 120 and the Commerce Department added 40 companies and research institutions to a trade restriction list over their alleged support of the Russian military.

"The United States and our allies will continue to take decisive action across the globe to stop the flow of critical tools and technologies that Russia needs to wage its illegal and immoral war against Ukraine," Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in the statement.

China's Washington embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said Beijing was firmly opposed to "illegal and unjustifiable unilateral sanctions."

"The U.S. makes false accusations against China's normal trade with Russia, just as it continues to pour unprecedented military aid into Ukraine. This is typical double standard, and extremely hypocritical and irresponsible," Liu said.

The Russian and Indian embassies in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Turkey's government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. has repeatedly warned against supplying Russia with Common High Priority Items - advanced components including microelectronics deemed by the U.S. and European Union as likely to be used for Russia's war in Ukraine.

The State Department official said there has been an increase in the export of such goods from India to Russia, as well as increased interest in taking action against the companies facilitating such activity.

A senior administration official said Wednesday's action was designed to signal the U.S. would take action against Indian companies if progress is not made through communication.

“With India, we have been very direct and blunt with them about the concerns we have about what we see as sort of emerging trends in that country that we want to stop before they get too far down the road,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

India-based Futrevo was among the companies targeted by the State Department, which accused it of being involved in the supply of high-priority items to the Russia-based manufacturer of Orlan drones.

The Treasury also targeted Shreya Life Sciences Private Limited, which it said since 2023 has sent hundreds of shipments of U.S.-trademarked technology to Russia, totaling tens of millions of dollars.

CHINA

A second senior State Department official told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday that more than 70% of the high-priority goods getting to Russia was from China, more than an estimated $22 billion worth since the start of the war.

"That's over 13 times the next largest supplier," the official said, which as of the end of 2023 was Turkey.

Among those targeted on Wednesday were Hong Kong and China-based companies involved in the shipment of tens of millions of dollars worth of high-priority items to Russia-based companies or end-users, the State and Treasury departments said.

The U.S. also took actions on a variety of entities supporting Russia's Arctic LNG 2 project, which is 60% owned by Russia's Novatek, and was to become Russia's largest liquefied natural gas plant. Novatek has been forced to scale back Arctic LNG 2, which had been planned to reach an eventual output of 19.8 million metric tons per year, following a raft of U.S. sanctions starting in 2023 with additional measures in August and September.

But the U.S. held back from using an executive order signed by President Joe Biden last year that threatened penalties for financial institutions that help Russia circumvent sanctions. The senior administration official said banking sectors had taken notice of the authority and moved toward compliance.

(Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis, Tim Gardner, Simon Lewis, David Lawder, Alex Alper, David Shepardson and Michael Martina in Washington, Polina Devitt and Alexander Marrow in London and Jonathan Spicer in Istanbul; Editing by Nick Zieminski, Rod Nickel and Daniel Wallis)