The Treasury is putting new sanctions on both companies and their executives for assisting the Russian government in cyberattacks against the US:
AP – The Trump administration on Monday slapped sanctions on several Russian companies and businessmen for engaging in cyberattacks and assisting Russia’s military and intelligence services with other malicious activities.
The Treasury Department said it was imposing sanctions on five Russian firms and three of their executives under legislation passed last year and an executive order aimed at punishing efforts to hack into U.S. computer systems. The sanctions freeze any assets that those targeted may have in U.S. jurisdictions and bar Americans from doing business with them.
“The United States is engaged in an ongoing effort to counter malicious actors working at the behest of the Russian Federation and its military and intelligence units to increase Russia’s offensive cyber capabilities,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.
Treasury said the sanctions were a response to a number of cyberattacks, including last year’s NotPetya attack, as well as intrusions into the U.S. energy grid and global network infrastructure. It also said that Russia had been tracking undersea cables that carry the bulk of the world’s telecommunications data.
The companies affected are: Digital Security and its subsidiaries ERPScan and Embedi; the Kvant Scientific Research Institute; and Divetechnoservices. The three sanctioned men are Aleksandr Lvovich Tribun; Oleg Sergeyevich Chirikov; and Vladimir Yakovlevich Kaganskiy; all of whom work for Divetechnoservices.
Treasury said Digital Security had provided material and technological support to Russia’s Federal Security Services, or FSB. It said Divetechnoservices had procured a variety of underwater equipment and diving systems, including a submarine, for Russian government agencies.
In related news, Putin says he’ll be glad to hold talks with Trump:
POLITICO – Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed criticism of Moscow at the G7 meeting as “babbling” and confirmed he would be happy to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Speaking at a press conference in China following a regional summit Sunday, Putin refused to comment on the G7 final statement but said that its criticism of Russia’s “so-called destabilizing efforts” in the West is “unfounded,” and that “this creative babbling” by other world leaders has so far “led to nothing.”
Confirming previous reports that a U.S.-Russia summit could take place, possibly in Vienna, Putin said he would welcome a meeting with his U.S. counterpart and he shares Trump’s concern about the possibility of a new arms race.
This news broke before the news about the sanctions, but I doubt that will have any impact on Putin’s attitude. I’m sure he’ll gladly meeting Trump in a G2 summit.