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President Joe Biden announced "significant" new sanctions on Russia one day after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced he was sending troops in separatist-controlled regions of Eastern Ukraine.
Biden called Russia's actions are "the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine," calling them a "flagrant violation of international law."
"To put it simply, Russia announced it is carving out a big chunk of Ukraine. Last night Putin authorized Russian forces to deploy into these regions. Today, he asserted these regions are actually extended deeper than the two areas he recognized, claiming large areas currently under the jurisdiction of the Ukraine government," he said.
Biden said that the U.S. will be implementing sanctions against Russian state development corporation VEB, Russia's military bank, and Russia's sovereign debt. He said that in the coming days, sanctions will also be placed on Russia's elite and their families.
Biden said that he hopes the sanctions will deter future Russian aggression and warned more sanctions could be applied in the future.
"I'm going to begin to impose sanctions in response, far beyond the steps we and our allies and partners implemented in 2014. If Russia goes further with this invasion, we stand prepared to go further as with sanctions," Biden added.
The latest sanctions are in addition to those put in place on Monday (February 21), which ban "new investment, trade, and financing by U.S. persons to, from, or in," the two regions controlled by Moscow-backed separatists.