Mark Zuckerberg And Kamala Harris On Russia’s Latest Odd Sanction List

Topline

Russia imposed personal sanctions against a remarkably odd list of Americans on Thursday, including Meta’s billionaire founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Vice President Kamala Harris and several journalists, in a move that’s unlikely to affect and designed to retaliate against the U.S. and its allies’ robust sanctions against Russian individuals and companies.

Key Facts

Russia sanctioned 29 Americans in total on Thursday the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement, barring individuals from traveling to Russia and freezing any assets they may hold in the country – sanctions that will likely have no real punitive effect given the group’s lack of known Russian ties.

ABC journalist George Stephanopoulos, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, the chief executives of Bank of America and LinkedIn and journalists and researchers covering Russia are among those sanctioned.

The link between the unusual mix of individuals is an intent to spread a supposed anti-Russian agenda, the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry said in its statement.

Russia previously sanctioned President Joe Biden, his son Hunter Biden, former Secretary of State and Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and several White House officials on March 15.

Crucial Quote

“A funny thing happened to me on the way to work today,” Kevin Rothrock, the Connecticut-based managing editor of the Meduza news website covering Russia tweeted shortly after he was included in the sanctions announced Thursday. CNN reporter Bianna Goldryga, who tweeted she was told as a refugee fleeing the Soviet Union in 1980 she can never enter Soviet territory again, said, “I guess the Kremlin waited more than four decades (and an unprovoked war against a former member state) to make it this official?”

Tangent

In the prior round of sanctions, Russia did not include a “Jr.” to designate Biden by his legal name, thus potentially actually sanctioning the president’s dead father. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki pointed out the discrepancy with during a March 15 press briefing, saying Russia “may have sanctioned his dad, may he rest in peace.”

List

1. Eddy Acevedo; Chief of staff at the Wilson Center
2. William Brown; CEO of L3Harris Technologies
3. David Deptula; Dean of the Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Power Studies
4. Eileen Drake; CEO of Aerojet Rocketdyne
5. Doug Emhoff; Second Gentleman
6. Bianna Golodryga; Journalist at CNN
7. Margaret Goodlander; Counsel to the Attorney General
8. Christopher Watson Grady; Vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
9. Kamala Harris; Vice President
10. Kathleen Hicks; Deputy Secretary of Defense
11. David Ignatius; Columnist at the Washington Post
12. Robert Kagan; Columnist at the Washington Post
13. John Kirby; Press secretary of the Department of Defense
14. Ronald Klain; Chief of staff at the White House
15. Matthew Kroenig; Professor at Georgetown University
16. Roger Krone; CEO of Leidos
17. Rachel Levine; Assistant secretary for health
18. Brian Moynihan; CEO of Bank of America
19. Wahid Nawabi; CEO of AeroVironment
20. Phebe Novakovic; CEO of General Dynamics
21. Michael Petters; CEO of Huntington Ingalls Industries
22. Ned Price; Spokesman for the State Department
23. Ryan Roslansky; CEO of “LinkedIn”
24. Kevin Rothrock; Journalist at Meduza
25. Horacio Rozanski; CEO of Booz Allen Hamilton
26. Evan Maureen Ryan; Cabinet secretary at the White House
27. George Stephanopoulos; Journalist at ABC
28. Kathy Warden; CEO of Northrop Grumann
29. Mark Zuckerberg; CEO of Meta

Further Reading

Russia sanctions Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton and others (BBC)