Trade sanctions, military aid, NATO ties: US Prez Joe Biden's response to Russia over Ukraine

Threatening Moscow with additional economic and trade sanctions, Biden said “Putin is an aggressor who chose war, the US will impose additional sanctions and export controls against Russia for invading Ukraine.

(Photo credit: Reuters)

New Delhi: US President Joe Biden on Thursday addressed the world for the first time post-Russia's all-in military operation to invade Ukraine and called his counterpart in Moscow an “aggressor” and “tyrant.”

Threatening Moscow with additional economic and trade sanctions, so far US’ only major against the Russian President Vladimir Putin, Biden said “Putin is an aggressor who chose war, the US will impose additional sanctions and export controls against Russia for invading Ukraine.

Fresh US sanctions against Russia

As per Biden’s address, the US and its allies in Europe are blocking assets of four large Russian banks, imposing export controls, sanctioning oligarchs.

The US President further added that the sanctions were designed to have a long-term impact on Russia and to minimize the impact on the United States and its allies adding that the steps would limit Russia`s ability to do business in dollars, euros, pounds and yen.

The sanctions include the dramatic expansion of the so-called Foreign Direct Product rule, forcing companies making high and low tech items overseas with US tools to seek a license from the United States before shipping to Russia.

The rules also instruct the Commerce Department to deny almost all of those license requests.

Biden said NATO would meet on Friday to map out further measures. He reiterated that the United States would not engage in war with Russia, but that it would meet its Article 5 commitments to defend NATO partners.

The US leader also reiterated the possibility of sanctioning Russian President Vladimir Putin personally over Russia`s invasion of Ukraine.

Military help by the US

 The United States is sending 7,000 troops to Germany to help reassure NATO allies who are part of a larger contingent that had already been put on alert earlier this year, a senior US defence official said.

The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the troops would be made up of an armored brigade combat team and would leave for Germany in the coming days.

President Joe Biden referred to these troops in a speech earlier on Thursday.

The reports came after Biden said that the US will not send its troops to Ukraine but will 'defend every inch of NATO territory'.

"Our forces are not and will not be engaged in a conflict with Russia in Ukraine. Our forces are not going to Europe to fight in Ukraine but to defend and reassure NATO allies," Biden said. 

G7 Meet

President Joe Biden also announced that he met with his counterparts of other Group of Seven (G7) countries to discuss next moves they will take on Russia in response to Moscow`s military operation in the Donbas region.

"This morning, I met with my G7 counterparts to discuss President Putin’s unjustified attack on Ukraine and we agreed to move forward on devastating packages of sanctions and other economic measures to hold Russia to account", Biden said in a tweet.