Washington, D.C., August 24, 2024, The Europe Today: Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov has condemned the latest round of US sanctions against Moscow, labeling them as ineffective and politically driven. The sanctions, announced on Friday by the US State and Treasury Departments, target nearly 400 individuals and entities across Russia, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, accused of supporting Russia’s military-industrial complex.
In a Telegram post on Saturday, Antonov criticized the Biden administration for its “fruitless Russophobic ‘salvos’,” suggesting that the measures are intended to emphasize Vice President Kamala Harris’ “anti-Russian essence” amid the intense US election campaign. “The administration [of US President Joe Biden] is in agony,” Antonov wrote, asserting that the sanctions are doing little more than exacerbating tensions and causing harm to both domestic and international stakeholders.
Antonov argued that the sanctions not only negatively impact domestic consumers in Russia but also disrupt America’s global partners. He called for a move away from the dominance of the US dollar in the international financial system to achieve true economic independence.
Since 2014, when Crimea was annexed by Russia and conflict erupted in Eastern Ukraine, the US and its allies have imposed a record 22,000 sanctions on Moscow. Moscow has consistently denounced these sanctions as illegal and retaliated with travel bans and other measures against Western officials.
Antonov contended that the sanctions have been so extensive that further punitive actions from Washington are inconsequential. He emphasized that the Russian authorities remain committed to ensuring that their citizens are not unduly affected by US policies.
Recent reports, including from the Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, have highlighted the limited effectiveness of these sanctions in halting Russia’s military operations and the administrative challenges faced by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in managing the complex sanctions regime.
