BRUSSELS — The U.S. announced a package of new sanctions against Russia and further aid for Ukrainian refugees as President Joe Biden looked to rally the leaders of some of the world’s most powerful democracies to increase their efforts to aid Ukraine in a series of high-stakes meetings.
The U.S. said it would place additional sanctions on more than 400 Russians and Russian entities, including the Duma and more than 300 of its members, along with more than 40 defense companies, said a senior administration official. It also plans to take additional steps to prevent Russia from attempting to prop up its economy.
The White House also announced it would allow as many as 100,000 Ukrainians to enter the U.S., with a focus on those who are most vulnerable. The administration is also prepared to offer more than $1 billion in additional funding towards humanitarian assistance and $11 billion over the next five years to address food security threats after the disruptions to the Russian and Ukrainian agricultural industry.
The additional efforts come as senior administration officials say Biden is trying to raise pressure on other nations to increase their support to Ukraine as he himself has been under pressure himself at home to do more as he attends a series of summits Thursday.
Biden attended an emergency gathering of NATO leaders in the morning where a senior administration official at the meeting described the mood as having been “sober, it’s been resolute and it’s been incredibly united.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also addressed the meeting, where he requested continued and increased security assistance. But he didn’t repeat his request for a no-fly zone or NATO membership — two moves the group has rejected, the senior administration official said.
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The NATO summit will be followed by a meeting with leaders of the Group of Seven leading industrial nations and an address to European Union leaders, the White House said.
Biden is scheduled to hold a news conference following his day of meetings.
Biden was also expected to discuss the long-term U.S. military posture in Europe with the allies, as well as how the countries would respond if Russia were to carry out nuclear or chemical warfare, National security adviser Jake Sullivan
Sullivan said the group would also have an announcement Friday after Biden’s meeting with the European Union leaders about a plan to reduce European dependence on oil from Russia.
Along with the new sanctions, the U.S. and other members of the G7 and the EU will also announce plans to try to blunt the Central Bank of Russia’s ability to prop up its economy by making clear that any transaction involving gold related to the Central Bank of Russia is prohibited, said a senior administration official.
The G7 also plans to jointly say that international organizations and multilateral corporations should no longer conduct their activities with Russia in a business-as-usual manner, said the second official.
“Our purpose here is to methodically remove the benefits and privileges Russia once enjoyed as a participant in the international economic order,” the official said.
The new sanctions include 328 Duma members; Herman Gref, the head of Russia’s largest financial institution Sberbank and a Putin adviser since the 1990s; member of the Russian elite Gennady Timchenko, his companies and his family members; 17 board members of Russian financial institution Sovcombank; and 48 large Russian defense state-owned enterprises.
A key topic during the NATO meeting was China and a recognition that leaders of the alliance need to continue to call on Beijing not to support Russia and to push for an end to the conflict, the senior administration official said.
In his remarks to the NATO leaders, Biden talked about what the U.S. has done to impose costs on Russia, the strong security and humanitarian support for Ukraine, and the U.S. commitment to NATO, the official said.
As the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II enters its second month, the discussions here could be among the most consequential of Biden’s presidency. When Biden was asked as he was leaving the White House for Brussels how likely he thought the threat of chemical warfare was, he said, “I think it’s a real threat.”
The White House has established a team of national security officials to plan scenarios should Putin use chemical weapons, a senior administration official said. The so-called Tiger Team is also planning for a range of other contingencies, including the potential use of biological weapons or the targeting of U.S. security convoys. The news was first reported by The New York Times.
White House officials say they hope the visit and the summits will also provide a show of unity that could deter Russia.
Biden was seen greeting and chatting with the other 29 NATO leaders before the closed-door meeting, which is expected to last more than five hours.
NATO heads of state pose for a group photo during an extraordinary summit at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Thursday.Thibault Camus / AP
“We are united in condemning the Kremlin’s unprovoked aggression and in our support for Ukraine sovereignty and integrity, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said ahead of the meeting. The group would also discuss efforts to strengthen the military alliance’s defenses in the short and long term, he said.
At home, Biden continues to face pressure from Democrats and Republicans alike to do more for Ukraine, along with sagging approval numbers from voters. In a Gallup Poll this month, 42 percent of respondents said they approved of the job he is doing, little changed in recent months, although his handling of the conflict with Russia rose by 6 points, to 42 percent.
Biden plans to travel to Poland on Friday to offer support as it deals with millions of refugees who are fleeing the conflict and to thank U.S. troops stationed there.
Kristen Welker contributed.