WASHINGTON—The U.S. has imposed a set of powerful sanctions against Russia’s economy to punish it for the invasion of Ukraine. Now, U.S. officials are pushing to ensure they are effective, closing loopholes, lobbying other nations for support, and cracking down on people abetting Russia’s evasion.
Administration officials say the goal of this second phase is to cut off what avenues remain that provide revenue and imports President Vladimir Putin needs to prosecute the war, even as Europe continues to purchase significant volumes of oil and gas from Russia. That means targeting foreign banks and cryptocurrency platforms that help Russia maintain access to international currencies, taking over bank accounts and corporate assets of blacklisted oligarchs, and penalizing foreign companies caught exporting controlled goods to the country.
