Russia adopts measures against UK media

Russia has planned to take further measures against UK media based in the country, after London imposed new sanctions targeting Russian state media outlets, including Sputnik news agency.

Britain last week announced sanctions on 14 more Russian entities and people, including state media organizations behind RT (Russia Today), Sputnik news channel, and some senior figures, saying it was targeting those who promote President Vladimir Putin's "fake news and narratives."

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, in a press briefing, said, "The only thing [British Foreign Secretary] Liz Truss has achieved as of today... is that corresponding, mirror image, symmetrical measures — call them what you will — have been taken against British media here in Russia. Have been taken and will be taken.”

Russian authorities blocked access to the BBC's main news website on March 16, accusing it of playing a "determined role in undermining the Russian stability and security," with Moscow's Foreign Ministry warning of more retaliatory measures against the medium.

Earlier, Zakharova had condemned the banning of Russian media RT and Sputnik, claiming the world was being deprived of Russia's point of view and Western media were only giving one side.

UK announces new sanctions targeting Russian state media

The United Kingdom has announced a new set of sanctions targeting Russian state media, ratcheting up the US-led offensive against Moscow over the Russian military campaign in Ukraine.

Britain is acting in concert with its Western allies to try to cripple Russia's economy as punishment for its military offensive against Ukraine. Truss on Wednesday announced that the UK would impose an asset freeze on Russia's largest bank, place sanctions on eight more Russian oligarchs, and end imports of oil and coal by next year.

So far, the UK has imposed sanctions on more than 1,200 Russian individuals and entities, officials say.

"Our latest wave of measures will bring an end to the UK's imports of Russian energy and sanction yet more individuals and businesses, decimating Putin's war machine. Together with our allies, we are showing the Russian elite that they cannot wash their hands of the atrocities committed on Putin’s orders. We will not rest until Ukraine prevails," Truss said.

By the end of 2022, the UK would end all dependency on Russian coal and oil, the sanctions announcement said, with a pledge to end imports of gas "as soon as possible thereafter." Export bans will also be put in place on key oil refining equipment, as well as a ban on imports of iron and steel products.

US to sanction Russian officials, ban new investment in Russia

The Biden administration will impose new sanctions on Russia this week that include a ban on new investments and sanctions on Russian government officials and their family members, according to reports.

The EU has also banned imports of Russian coal, also blocking Russian ships from entering European ports, amid divisions among the bloc's leaders on whether to restrict Russia's energy imports into the continent.

The US announced it was also slapping sanctions on Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank. The US has also put sanctions on two of Putin's adult daughters, Maria Vorontsova and Katerina Tikhonova.

The US has already sanctioned more than 140 Russian oligarchs and their family members and over 400 Russian government officials, Russian official said.

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