Washington targets individuals, firms in new Russia sanctions

The US Department of the Treasury has expanded sanctions against Russia, adding four individuals and three organisations linked to cybercrime activities, according to an official statement released by the agency’s press service.

The updated sanctions list includes Russian citizens Sergey Zelenyuk, Oleg Kucherov, and Marina Vasanovich, as well as Azizjon Mamashoyev, a citizen of Uzbekistan.

According to US authorities, Zelenyuk is suspected of purchasing at least eight cyber tools that originally belonged to the United States government and had been stolen from an American company. The tools were later allegedly resold without authorisation.

Sanctions were also imposed on the companies Advance Security Solutions and Special Technology Services LLC FZ, both registered in the United Arab Emirates, as well as on the Russian firm MATRIX LLC.

The Treasury Department stated that the sanctioned individuals and entities were involved in the purchase, sale, and brokerage of undisclosed software vulnerabilities known as zero-day exploits. Such tools can be used to conduct cyberattacks, steal information, and develop ransomware programs.

The restrictive measures were introduced under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which provides for sanctions related to intellectual property violations and activities tied to cyber threats.

Separately, US President Donald Trump approved the extension of existing sanctions against Russia for another year. These measures were originally imposed following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. The presidential order states that Russia’s actions and policies continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to US national security and foreign policy.

In response, the Kremlin described the decision to prolong sanctions as automatic and expressed hope that Washington would eventually lift anti-Russian restrictions, arguing that removing them would serve US interests.

By Tamilla Hasanova