U.S. 'Glad To See'' New EU Agreement On 13th Sanctions Package Against Russia

The United States said on Wednesday it's "glad to see the steps that the EU has taken" against Russia as its members approved a 13th package renewing sanctions that lists around 2,000 entities and individuals accused of helping Moscow procure weapons or of involvement in kidnapping Ukrainian children, as well as banning about 200 new targets, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports.

Belgium, which holds the rotating EU presidency, called the package "one of the broadest approved by the EU".

"We must keep degrading Putin's war machine," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement.  "We are also further cutting Russia’s access to drones."

"Obviously, we work closely with the EU and countries around the world on various sanctions packages," State Department's Matthew Miller told TURAN's correspondent as Washington was working on its own list of Russia sanctions which are poised to be announced tomorrow.

Miller went on to add: “We are always looking at additional ways we can choke off the Russian war machine that we can deny the Russian military industrial complex components that it needs to use to fund its war effort as well as hold accountable those involved in it.”

The spokesperson also told a daily briefing that Washington's sanctions should be expected to "follow the general direction of our past sanctions as well as specific sanctions in relation to the death of Aleksy Navalny.” 

Saturday will mark the second anniversary of the Russian invasion in Ukraine.