EU and US impose Crimea sanctions

The EU and US have imposed travel bans and asset freezes against a number of officials from Russia and Ukraine.

The sanctions came hours after Crimea’s parliament declared the region an independent state, following its residents’ vote to break away from Ukraine and seek to join Russia.

US president Barack Obama froze the US assets of seven Russian officials, including top advisers to Russian president Vladimir Putin, for their support of Crimea’s vote to secede from Ukraine.

The US is also imposing sanctions on four Ukrainians – including former president Viktor Yanukovych, a former top Ukrainian presidential adviser and two Crimea-based separatist leaders – under existing authority under a previous Obama order.

Senior administration officials also said they are working to identify what they called “Russian government cronies” to target the assets of those supporting the Crimea unrest, including individuals working in the arms industry.

The administration officials said Putin was not sanctioned despite his support of the Crimean referendum because the US does not usually begin with heads of state. But the officials say those sanctioned are very close to Putin and that the sanctions are “designed to hit close to home”.

The US announcement came shortly after the European Union announced travel bans and asset freezes on 21 people they have linked to the unrest in Crimea. Obama administration officials say there is some overlap between the US and European list, which was not immediately made public.

The sanctions were expected after residents in Crimea voted in favour of the split. Crimea’s parliament then declared the region an independent state.

The administration officials say there is some concrete evidence that some ballots for the referendum arrived pre-marked in many cities and “there are massive anomalies in the vote”. The officials did not say what that evidence was.

The United States, European Union and others say the action violates the Ukrainian constitution and international law and took place in the strategic peninsula under duress of Russian military intervention.

Putin maintained that the vote was legal and consistent with the right of self-determination, according to the Kremlin.

The administration officials said they will be looking at additional sanctions if Russia moves to annex Crimea or takes other action. Those targeted will have all US assets frozen and no one in the United States can do business with them under Obama’s order.

“Today’s actions send a strong message to the Russian government that there are consequences for their actions that violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including their actions supporting the illegal referendum for Crimean separation,” the White House said in a statement.

“Today’s actions also serve as notice to Russia that unless it abides by its international obligations and returns its military forces to their original bases and respects Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the United States is prepared to take additional steps to impose further political and economic costs,” the statement said.