WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Biden administration added 71 companies to a trade blacklist for supporting Russia on Friday, as the Group of Seven wealthy nations announced new sanctions on Moscow over its war in Ukraine.
The U.S. Commerce Department's action targets support for Russia's military and expands the scope of export controls on Russia and Belarus. The blacklist includes 69 Russian entities, one from Armenia and one from Kyrgyzstan.
The new export controls target oil and gas projects in Russia and Belarus, Commerce said. Other companies include aircraft repair and parts production plants, gunpowder, tractor and automobile factories, shipyards and engineering centers in Russia.
The actions are part of the latest round of sanctions and export controls by the United States and other countries in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. They are designed to degrade Russia's industrial base and its ability to sustain the war.
The U.S. and a coalition of 37 other countries have imposed unprecedented export controls on Russia since its unprovoked assault on Ukraine in February 2022.
The new moves came as the United States and the rest of the "Group of Seven" major economies agreed to stiffen sanctions against Russia as they meet in Japan.
In the oil and gas sector, Commerce said it is targeting exploration or production from deepwater, Arctic offshore, or shale projects in Russia or Belarus that have the potential to produce oil or gas.
(Reporting by Karen Freifeld and Susan Heavey; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Kirsten Donovan)
