Washington to impose additional Russian sanctions on Monday following Novichok attack
US sanctions on Russia, retaliation for the Salisbury nerve agent attack, are to take effect on Monday.
Washington announced that it is to limit foreign assistance to humanitarian means only, terminate arms exports and prevent the issuance of credit from any US government entity. Items deemed sensitive to national security are also to be prevented from export to Russia.
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The embargo adds to existing economic sanctions issued by the US against Russia over its alleged meddling in the last presidential election.
Moscow denies accusations of election interference and chemical attacks. Washington has said it is unlikely to lift the restrictions, however.
National security advisor John Bolton said today: "The sanctions remain in force and will remain in force until the required change in Russian behaviour".
The measures are introduced under the 1991 Chemical and Biological Weapons and Warfare Elimination Act. Exceptions include commercial aviation safety, space flight, exports to wholly-owned US subsidiaries and deemed exports, all of which are to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
The sanctions were announced by the administration earlier this month after the State Department determined that “the government of the Russian federation has used chemical weapons in violation of international law or lethal chemical weapons against its own nationals.”
It follows the nerve agent attack on former Russian agent, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter, Yulia Skripal, in March.
Though both Russian nationals survived, a liquid form of the Novichok type chemical was to later kill Salisbury resident Dawn Sturgess in June, also hospitalising Charlie Rowley.
Russia has denied any involvement in the incidents.
It was announced this afternoon that the police cordon surrounding the Queen Elizabeth Gardens, the location where all four were exposed, had been lifted.
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