British Prime Minister Boris Johnson disembarks from his plane as he arrives in Brussels, Belgium March 24, 2022 to attend a NATO summit to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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LONDON — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin has crossed a red line towards barbarism with his invasion of Ukraine
His comments come as the UK imposed further sanctions on key Russian sectors it said are “fueling Putin’s war machine”.
Arriving for a NATO summit in Brussels on Thursday, Johnson told reporters “Vladimir Putin has already crossed the red line into barbarism” and said more sanctions against strategic industries, banks and business elites were needed.
“It’s very important that we work together to get this done,” he said. The tougher the sanctions and the more done to help Ukraine, the sooner the conflict can be over, he told CNBC’s Hadley Gamble.
Johnson came to a series of diplomatic meetings to coincide with Thursday’s NATO summit, followed by meetings of EU and G-7 leaders. Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine is high on the agenda, with world leaders pondering how to provide more aid to the war-ravaged nation after a month of Russian bombing.
The UK announced 65 new Russian sanctions on Thursday morning, targeting a number of key strategic industries and individuals supporting the Russian invasion.
The sanctions target Russian Railways and Defense Company Kronshtadt, the main manufacturer of Russian drones, as well as the Wagner Group – the organization of Russian mercenaries reportedly tasked with the assassination of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the British Foreign Office said in a statement Statement on Thursday with.
Six other banks are also targeted, including Alfa Bank, whose co-founders include previously sanctioned oligarchs Mikhail Fridman, Petr Aven and German Khan, and the world’s largest diamond producer Alrosa.
Those sanctioned include billionaire oil tycoon Eugene Shvidler and Tinkoff bank founder Oleg Tinkov. In addition, Herman Gref, the CEO of Russia’s largest bank Sberbank, and Polina Kovaleva, the stepdaughter of Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, were also sanctioned.
Galina Danilchenko, who was installed by Russia as the “mayor” of Ukraine’s Melitopol, is also being sanctioned – the first time a person has been sanctioned for collaborating with Russian forces currently in Ukraine.
‘Dirty Money’
The UK has now sanctioned over 1,000 individuals and companies under the Russian sanctions regime since the invasion, the Foreign Office said.
Commenting on the sanctions, UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “These oligarchs, corporations and hired thugs are complicit in the murder of innocent civilians and it is right that they are paying the price. Putin should have no illusions – we are united with our allies and will continue to tighten the screws on the Russian economy to ensure he fails in Ukraine. There will be no let up.
She said all those sanctioned today would have their assets frozen in the UK. This means that no UK citizen or company can do business with them, and people subject to travel bans are also prohibited from traveling to or from the UK
The latest sanctions will bring the total global asset value of the banks Britain has sanctioned since the invasion to £500 billion ($660 billion) and the net worth of oligarchs and family members to over £150 billion, she said.
Truss said Britain “led international sanctions efforts, cutting off entire sectors of Russia’s economy by targeting its defense companies, trade and transport sectors and working with allies to lock Russia out of the SWIFT financial system.”
A bird’s-eye view of East London.
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The UK has often been accused of ignoring the large amounts of wealth held (and laundered) by Russians in London, with much of this wealth derived from ill-gotten gains and invested in the UK property market.
The government said last month they were accelerated plans to tackle the flow of “dirty money”.
“There is no place for dirty money in the UK. We’re moving faster and harder to tear down the facade behind which those who support Putin’s campaign of destruction have hid for so long. Those who support Putin have been taken note: there will be no place to hide your ill-gotten gains,” Johnson said in February.