The Group of Seven (G7) nations have agreed on a new package of sanctions against Russia aimed at further isolating Moscow from the global economy and limiting its access to key military technology, according to a senior Biden administration official.
President Joe Biden and other leaders will announce the new measures in a joint statement Thursday on the first day of the G7 summit in Japan, a show of unity from the international coalition backing Ukraine in the war with Russia.
“All G7 members are preparing to implement new sanctions and export controls” on Russia, the official said.
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The measures will “further disrupt Russia’s ability to source” imports for its war effort, the official said, and close loopholes on existing sanctions that allow some countries and companies to continue trading banned goods with Moscow.
The new sanctions also include further restrictions on Russia’s energy sector and access to the international finance system, the official said, speaking on background to preview the announcement.
The G7 leaders will also pledge to keep Russian sovereign assets frozen until the end of the war.
Separately, the Biden administration on Thursday will announce further steps that the U.S. is taking on its own to tighten the screws on the Russian economy and military industry.
“This is going to be a significant effort that will extensively restrict Russia’s access to goods that matter to its battlefield capability” in Ukraine, the official said. No details were given on what specific military technology or equipment would be targeted.
Russia is already facing sanctions on high-end technology like microchips that are critical for precision-guided munitions and other advanced weapons systems. Moscow has increasingly turned to U.S. adversaries like Iran to procure military technology it imported from the West before the start of the war in Ukraine.
The U.S. will also blacklist an additional 70 entities that receive Russian exports, expand existing sanctions to new sectors of the Russian economy, and take additional steps to align U.S. sanctions more closely with sanctions imposed by the European Union and United Kingdom.
The announcement of the new sanctions package at the G7 Summit comes as Kyiv prepares to launch a major counteroffensive to retake territory controlled by Russia.
The counteroffensive will be a pivotal moment for both sides in the war, but it’s as yet unclear if Kyiv’s push will change the broader contours of a conflict that has centered on fighting along the frontline in Eastern Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has continued his appeals to Western allies to increase military aid to Ukraine, including during a recent visit to the U.K. Zelensky is expected to make a fresh appeal to leaders at the G7, the U.S. official said.
“Bottom line, we’re upping the economic pressure on Russia,” the official said.