AP, Washington :
Congress is rushing to put in place hard-hitting sanctions on Russia in response to its takeover of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, hoping Europe will follow the lead of the United States in upping the pressure on President Vladimir Putin’s government.
The US sanctions push represents a rare case of broad agreement among the Obama administration and Democrats and Republicans in both houses of Congress. But they’re also united in their concern that American economic penalties will mean little without the participation of European countries with far deeper commercial relations with Russia.
The Senate is taking the lead with legislation that would combine loan guarantees to Ukraine’s fledgling government and measures against Russian government officials, state-owned banks and companies. The goal of the sanctions is to force Putin to withdraw Russian troops from Crimea. The bill could be introduced as early as next week.
Meanwhile, House Republicans have circulated a bill paying for the loan guarantees, while the top Republican and Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee introduced a resolution Wednesday condemning Russia’s actions in Ukraine and calling on the Obama administration to impose “visa, financial, trade and other sanctions.” The committee will address the resolution Thursday after hearing testimony from State Department and Treasury officials.
Since last weekend, Russian troops have taken control of much of the peninsula on the Black Sea, where ethnic Russians are the majority. Moscow doesn’t recognize the Ukrainian leadership that came to power after protesters ousted the country’s pro-Russian president last month. Putin and other officials have cited strategic interests as well as the protection of ethnic Russians in making the case for intervention.
