Putin’s daughters and Russian senators targeted by new Australian sanctions

SYDNEY — The Australian government has imposed sanctions and travel bans on two daughters of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the daughter of Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, it said in a statement on Friday.

This follows similar measures taken by other Western countries, including the United States and Britain, and brings the total number of people and entities in Russia subject to Australian sanctions to nearly 750.

He did not name Putin’s two daughters, but the Russian president is known to have two adult daughters, Katerina Tikhonova and Maria Vorontsova. The statement adds that President Putin and Lavrov were added to the sanctions list on February 27.

The new round of sanctions also targets 144 Russian senators who gave their support to President Putin by endorsing the “illegitimate” recognition as independent of the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine on February 22, the ministry said. Australian Foreign Office in its statement.

Foreign Secretary Marisa Payne added that Australia would continue to increase costs to Russia by targeting those who bear responsibility for “unjustified and unprovoked aggression in Ukraine”. Russia calls its invasion a “special military operation” to demilitarize and “denazify” Ukraine.

Australia last week imposed targeted financial sanctions on 14 Russian state-owned companies, including defence-related entities such as truck maker Kamaz and shipping companies SEVMASH and United Shipbuilding Corp.