On Thursday, the White House announced new sanctions on Russian oligarchs, as the United States continues to punish Russia for its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. The new sanctions will be placed on “Putin’s cronies and their family members” who have been profiting from Putin’s violent regime. Full blocking sanctions will target eight “Russian elites and their family members who enable Putin.” “Today, the United States, in coordination with Allies and partners, is targeting additional Russian elites and family members who continue supporting President Putin despite his brutal invasion of Ukraine,” the White House said in a statement. “These individuals have

On Wednesday, White House Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre suggested that the Biden administration is not open to sanction Russia’s energy sector as a response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The administration declined to rule it out entirely but said doing so was not in US strategic interests, citing disruptions to the global oil supply and the effect it would have on gas prices. “We don’t have a strategic interest in reducing the global supply of energy,” Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One, according to CNN. Gas prices have consistently risen since President Biden took office, reaching a

Leaders from Ukraine and Russia are scheduled to meet on Thursday in Belarus for talks as the Russian invasion of the country continues, according to a top aide for Russian President Vladimir Putin. “As far as I know, the Ukrainian delegation has already departed from Kyiv, is en route … We’re expecting them tomorrow,” Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation, said Wednesday evening, according to the Associated Press. “According to Medinsky, the two sides agreed on the Brest region of Belarus, which borders Poland, as the site of the talks,” the report added. The news comes the same day that