U.S. plans new Russia sanctions

Ex-spy’s poisoning in English town leads to penalties

WASHINGTON — The United States announced Wednesday it will impose new sanctions on Russia for illegally using a chemical weapon in an attempt to kill a former spy and his daughter in Britain this year.

The sanctions, to be imposed this month, come despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to improve relations with Russia.

The State Department said the U.S. this week determined that Russia had used the Novichok nerve agent to poison Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, and that sanctions would follow. It said Congress is being notified of the Aug. 6 determination and that the sanctions would take effect on or around Aug. 22, when the finding is to be published in the Federal Register.

Those sanctions will include the presumed denial of export licenses for Russia to purchase many items with national security implications, according to a senior State Department official who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.

The U.S. made a similar determination in February, when it found that North Korea used a chemical weapon to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half brother in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2017.

Skripal and his daughter were poisoned by the Novichok military-grade nerve agent in the English town of Salisbury in March. Britain has accused Russia of being behind the attack, which the Kremlin denies.

Months later, two residents of a nearby town with no ties to Russia were also poisoned. Police believe the couple accidentally found a bottle containing Novichok. One of them died.

The U.S. had joined Britain in condemning Russia for the Skripal poisoning and joined with European nations in expelling Russian diplomats, but it had yet to formally determine the Russian government had “used chemical or biological weapons in violation of international law or has used lethal chemical or biological weapons against its own nationals.”

Waivers have been issued for foreign assistance and space flight activities, while commercial passenger aviation and other commercial goods for civilian use will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, the official said.