US imposes additional sanctions on Russia

The United States has imposed sanctions on a number of entities within the Russian Defence Ministry, as well as two Russian companies and five Russian nationals.

The State Department said the individuals and entities have been added to the sanctions list for engaging in activities covered by the Iran, North Korea and Syria Nonproliferation Act (INKSNA). The decision was made on 24 July.

The list includes the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of Russia's Defence Ministry and units thereof, Russia's Ground Forces and units thereof, the Russian Defence Ministry Directorate for Advanced Inter-Service Research and Special Projects and units thereof, and the 1061st Material-Technical Support Centre.

It also features two Russian wholesale trading companies, Gedion Alpha and International Invest.

The Russian nationals listed are Aleksandr Prikhodko, Andrei Gusev, Andrey Kosolapov, Vladislav Morozik and Sergey Tsibarev.

Individuals and companies from Malaysia, Taiwan, Iran, Syria, China and North Korea are also on the list.

The US is moving closer to adopting the Russia sanctions bill co-sponsored by the late Senator Lindsey Graham.

The EU is reported to be rethinking its sanctions strategy towards Russia, moving away from sweeping packages in favour of more frequent incremental measures.