US joins EU in agreeing to freeze assets of Russia’s Putin and Lavrov

The Biden administration has announced that it will move to freeze the assets of President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, following the European Union and the United Kingdom in directly sanctioning top Russian leadership.

The Treasury Department announced the sanctions shortly after the EU said it had also approved an asset freeze against Mr Putin and Mr Lavrov as part of a broader package of sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson also told Nato leaders during a call on Friday that Britain would move to impose sanctions against Mr Putin and Mr Lavrov.

It was not immediately clear how impactful an asset freeze would be on the pair, but the direct action targeting the Russian president was meant to be seen as a warning to Mr Putin that he could emerge as an international pariah if he does not end the invasion of Ukraine.