U.S. announces new Russia sanctions - its longest blacklist to date | 23 Feb 2024 | The U.S. has sanctioned another 500 people and entities connected with Russia, including financial executives and prison officials. Joe Biden said that the restrictions will ensure that Russian President Vladimir Putin "pays an even steeper price for his aggression," but the Kremlin has dismissed them as "fruitless." The sanctioned entities include the operator of Russia's Mir payment card system, which soared in popularity after Russia was cut off from SWIFT and Visa/MasterCard in 2022. Russian energy firms and companies linked with the military-industrial sector made up the bulk of the 100 targeted entities, which were published in a U.S. Treasury Department list on Friday.