President Joe Biden detailed new efforts with NATO allies and the G7 to squeeze Russian President Vladimir Putin, even more, to hold him accountable for the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine.
"I’ve just spoken for some time with President Zelensky of Ukraine,” Biden said March 11. “I told him, as I have each and every time we’ve spoken, the U.S. stands with the people of Ukraine as they bravely fight to defend their country. And they are doing that."
The U.S. with its NATO allies and the G7 – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom – and the European Union took steps to deny most-favored-nation status to Russia.
Doing so will be another blow to the Russian economy that’s reportedly already suffering, Biden said in a White House briefing.
Nations agree to trade with low tariffs and few trade barriers under a most-favored-nation status, called permanent normal trade relations in the U.S., he said.
Russian billionaires Biden called corrupt are being added to a list of oligarchs the G7 is targeting to “capture their ill-begotten gains.”
Russia invaded Ukraine Feb. 24, the first major war in Europe since World War II. The escalating conflict has resulted in thousands of lives lost on both sides and has seen a bombardment of Ukrainian cities, with more than 2 million people fleeing the country.
