US puts more bans on Russia

THE US has imposed a broad array of sanctions on Russia to punish it for alleged interference in US elections, cyber-hacking, bullying Ukraine and other “malign” acts.

The measures, put in place yesterday, blacklisted Russian companies, expelled Russian diplomats and placed limits on the Russian sovereign debt market in steps sure to anger Moscow.

President Joe Biden issued an executive order authorising the US government to sanction any sector of the Russian economy and used it to restrict Russia’s ability to issue sovereign debt, to punish Moscow for interfering in the US election last year.

The Kremlinsaid it would respond in kind and said new US measures would reduce the chances of a summit between US Biden and President Vladimir Putin taking place.

Russia denies meddling in US elections and orchestrating a cyber hack to penetrate US government networks.

It also denies using a nerve agent to poison Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and the other allegations made by the US.