The United States on Wednesday took aim at Russia's oil refining sector with new export curbs and targeted Belarus with sweeping new export restrictions, as the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden amps up its crackdown on Moscow and Minsk over the invasion of Ukraine.
The new round of sanctions announced by the White House ban the export of specific refining technologies, making it harder for Russia to modernize its oil refineries.
The White House also applied a sweeping set of export restrictions levied against Russia last month to Belarus, arguing the controls would help prevent the diversion of items, including technology and software, in the defense, aerospace, and maritime sectors to Russia through Belarus.