Ukraine Calls on the US to Sanction All Russian Banks

Ukraine is calling on President Joe Biden's administration to sanction all Russian private banks to deprive President Putin of the ability to wage war.

Official Kyiv wants the U.S. to add several banks per week to its list of sanctioned financial institutions, according to Ukraininan ambassador to the USA, Oksana Markarova. She has conveyed the request to the Treasury Department.

"Sanctions are as important as weapons," Bloomberg quotes Markarova.

According to her, imposing sanctions against any Russian bank is completely legitimate, since they are all effectively involved in financing Putin's campaign..

"As soon as one bank is sanctioned, some other private bank suddenly becomes a financier of the industry or military," she said.

While a few banks can be left for certain purposes, "everything else should be sanctioned, because all of them are engaged in financing their terror machine that is conducting war," Oksana Markarova said.

Ukraine also insists that the U.S. State Department should declare Russia a state sponsor of terrorism, she added.

The U.S. Senate is putting pressure on the Biden administration to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.

The Russian foreign ministry has threatened to break off diplomatic relations with the U.S. if such a decision is taken.