United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
After it began on 24 February 2022, President Joe Biden condemned the invasion, provided military, financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, and imposed sanctions against Russia and Belarus.
[6] The Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funds the US Department of Defense to help train and advise the Ukrainian military, as well as to procure weaponry and equipment.
[6] The State Department's Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program helps allies like Ukraine buy weaponry and equipment from American manufacturers.
For more than two years, it forbade Ukraine to fire American weapons, like the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), at military targets inside Russia.
As the war enters its third year (as of April 2024), the battlefield situation evolved towards a stalemate and towards increased concerns that a persistent and determined Russian offensive could ultimately achieve its objectives.
[9] The Biden administration reportedly told Ukraine to stop attacking oil refineries in Russia, believing it would raise world energy prices and bring more aggressive Russian retaliation.
[24] On April 12, the United States sent $750M in additional military aid to Ukraine, including drones, howitzers and protective equipment to defend against chemical attacks.
[30] Rep. Chris Stewart of Utah, a member of the House Intelligence Committee, said as long as US resources were used wisely, the American people will continue to support aid.
During the Presidency of George W. Bush, the repression of opposition to the incumbent Alexander Lukashenko regime during the 2006 Belarusian presidential election led to the declaration of international emergency with Executive Order 13405 of June 16, 2006.
Each Executive Order is written pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act authority granted to the President to designate individuals as deemed necessary.
[43] Ukrainian and American officials believed that Russia attempted to use Belarus as a platform for an attack on Ukraine from the north, due to the close proximity of the Belarusian–Ukrainian border with the city of Kyiv.
[44][45][46] On 19 January 2022, United States President Joe Biden said his "guess" was that Russia "w[ould] move in" to Ukraine but Putin would pay "a serious and dear price" for an invasion and "would regret it".
[47][48] On February 21, 2022, following the recognition of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics, President Putin ordered additional Russian troops into Donbas, in what Russia called a "peacekeeping mission".
14024 for notable members of the Russian government including Alexander Bortnikov of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and the First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of Russia Sergey Kiriyenko.
[58] On February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin announced that he had made the decision to launch a "special military operation" in eastern Ukraine.
[62] Today, the United States, along with Allies and partners, is imposing severe and immediate economic costs on Russia in response to Putin’s war of choice against Ukraine.
Twelve were members of the Putin government including Yury Afonin, Leonid Kalashnikov, Vladimir Kashin, Ivan Melnikov, Dmitry Novikov, Vyacheslav Volodin, Gennady Zyuganov.
[83] On March 15, 2022, the Department of State designated eleven persons as those "who operate or have operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy" including Army general Dmitry Bulgakov and seven fellow Deputies in the Ministry of Defence; Army general Viktor Zolotov, Director of the National Guard of Russia and member of the Security Council of Russia; Dmitry Shugaev the head of Federal Service of Military-Technical Cooperation; and Aleksandr Mikheyev, Director of Rosoboronexport.
[89][90] On March 31, 2022, OFAC publicized the existence of a "procurement network engaged in proliferation activities" operating at the direction of Russian intelligence services.
The Office claims that the network of companies, including entities based in Russia, United Kingdom, Japan, Singapore and Spain was created to procure Western technologies while disguising that the end user was, in fact, the military and intelligence services of the Russian Federation.
[94] CNN,[95] the BBC,[96] and AFP[97] released video documentation of numerous dead bodies of civilians in the streets and yards in Bucha, some of them with tied arms or legs.
[101][102] On April 6, a Senior Biden administration official announced that "the sickening brutality in Bucha has made tragically clear the despicable nature of the Putin regime.
On 3 February 2022, John "Jack" Hanick was arrested in London for violating sanctions against Konstantin Valeryevich Malofeev [ru; uk; de], owner of Tsargrad TV.
[120][121] In the March 1, 2022 State of the Union Address, American President Joe Biden announced an effort to target the wealth of Russian oligarchs.
Judge Faruqui concluded his order stating, "The seizure of the Target Property is just the beginning of the reckoning that awaits those who would facilitate Putin’s atrocities.
[142][143] Biden additionally condemned Russian oligarchs who had supported Putin, stating that "We are joining with our European allies to find and seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets.
Biden's National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan informed Putin's foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov that the United States would not discuss a ceasefire without Ukraine's participation.
[159][160] Vice President Kamala Harris and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan attended the June 2024 Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland.
[167] A poll conducted by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute in June 2024 showed that 57% of respondents supported sending military aid to Ukraine, while 32% opposed it.
[170] In a poll of 1,565 Americans conducted by YouGov between August 17–20, 2024, 25% of respondents said the United States should increase military support of Ukraine, while 27% believed it should be maintained at the current level.
