Washington expands sanctions against the Russian "Wagner" group

ARK News… US President Joe Biden on Thursday expanded US sanctions against the Russian Wagner Group and associated companies and individuals for their role in the war in Ukraine and mercenary activities, including human rights violations in Africa.

The Treasury and State Departments announced the sanctions in coordinated statements that targeted dozens of associates of the Wagner Group, including some in the Central African Republic and the United Arab Emirates, as well as the director of Kalashnikov, the original manufacturer of the AK-47.

The sanctions also targeted the China Changsha Tianyi Aerospace Corporation and the Kou Technology Research Institute. Ltd., also known as Spacety China, provided clients of the Wagner Group with satellite imagery of Ukraine to support Wagner's military operations there. A Luxembourg-based subsidiary of Spacety China was also targeted by the sanctions.

The moves re-list the private military group Wagner, owned by a close confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin, as a "dangerous transnational criminal organization". The organization had previously been included in that category, but its re-listing widens the scope of sanctions against it.

The sanctions freeze any assets of those targeted in the United States or its jurisdiction and bar Americans from doing business with them.

"While the sanctions and export restrictions imposed on Russia by our international coalition continue to take a toll, the Kremlin is desperately searching for weapons and support - also through the brutal Wagner Group - to continue its unjust war on Ukraine," US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.

"Today's expansion of sanctions against Wagner, as well as the imposition of new sanctions on those associated with it and other companies that support Russia's military capabilities, will further impede Putin's ability to arm and prepare his war machine," the minister added.

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