London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Oct 05, 2025

US sanctioning Putin, sending troops after Biden speaks to Ukraine's president

US sanctioning Putin, sending troops after Biden speaks to Ukraine's president

The US has joined its European allies in plans to sanction Russian President Vladimir Putin, and is sending more troops to support Nato, after US President Joe Biden spoke directly with Ukraine’s president.

President Joe Biden’s decision to sanction Putin personally as Russia continued into the second day of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

‘Following a telephone conversation President Biden held with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and in alignment with the decision by our European allies, the United States will join them in sanctioning President Putin and Foreign Minister Lavrov and members of the Russian national security team,’ White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Friday afternoon.

‘I expect we’ll have more specific details out later this afternoon.’



The US’s decision comes hours after the European Union and the UK announced they would introduce sanctions against Putin and and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for roughly 40 minutes earlier on Friday. They spoke about tougher sanctions on Russia and the US providing more support, said Zelensky, who had pushed for punishing Putin.

‘Strengthening sanctions, concrete defense assistance and an anti-war coalition have just been discussed with @POTUS. Grateful to (United States) for the strong support to (Ukraine)!,’ he tweeted.

Zelensky had released a video lamenting that Ukraine was ‘left alone’ to fight Russia, and vowed to stay in Kyiv while it is under attack. He said he is Russia’s ‘No 1 target’.

Sanctioning Putin is largely symbolic, as he has hidden his wealth, making it hard to freeze his assets.

Psaki said that sanctioning him will ‘​send a clear message about the strength of the opposition to the actions by President Putin and the direction in his leadership of the Russian military’.

Biden previously said that sanctioning Putin was ‘on the table’. Asked what changed between the first and second day of Russia’s invasion, Psaki said ‘it has been under consideration and on the table for some time’.

‘The president’s view and strong principle from the beginning of this conflict, and even before, has been to take actions and steps in alignment with our European partners and this is certainly evidence of that,’ Psaki said.

On Friday, Biden also ordered the deployment of more troops to bolster US capabilities in Europe and support Nato, according to Sky News.

Biden on Thursday blocked exports of some products from the US to Russia, including semiconductor chips and other technology needed for military operations. He also imposed sanctions on four Russian banks, in addition to two financial institutions in the ‘first tranche’ of punishments. Biden has also worked with European allies to halt the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline linking Germany and Russia.

Zelensky late Friday warned that Russia would try to storm Kyiv that night. Russian forces have been assaulting Ukraine’s capital with explosions and gunfire getting closer to the government quarter.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
×