The Trump administration lifts sanctions against Russia before the Paris summit

Russia invades the east of Ukrai in 2014, bringing the The hot-water region of Crimea under de facto Russian control The United States and the European Union continue to recognize the peninsula as part of Ukraine.

The sanctions target three people and nine entities to support the economic integration efforts of Crimea in Russia or for violations of human rights. One of these entities is the Ministry of State Security of the Luhansk People's Republic, an unrecognized Ukrainian separatist state under the influence of the Kremlin. The ministry has used intimidation tactics in its prisons, including threats of violence and rape, as well as persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses, according to a statement from the Ministry of Finance.

The sanctions also list Andriy Volodymyrovych Sushko, an agent of the FSB, the heir to the KGB's secret service agency, for strangling, beating and using electric shocks on a Crimean Tatar activist. Other entities include companies operating in Crimea selling badets of the Ukrainian state to individuals sympathetic to Russia.

"The Treasury remains committed to targeting Russia-backed entities seeking to profit from the illegal annexation and occupation of Crimea by Russia. Our sanctions are a clear reminder that efforts to normalize investment and economic relations with those operating in Crimea will not be tolerated and are subject to US and European sanctions authorities, "said Sigal Mandelker. Treasury Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. Press release.

The administration also imposed sanctions on Russia earlier this year for mingling with the 2016 presidential election and for the attempted murder by poisoning of an old KGB spy in London. Moscow has denied any involvement in the poisoning and electoral interference of 2016.

Trump and Putin decided to attend the commemorative ceremony in Paris this weekend on the occasion from the anniversary of the end of the First World War, and observers are wondering if it will not be something else. buddy-buddy moment similar to their Helsinki summit this summer. At the meeting in Finland, Trump appeared to exclude Putin from any interference in the 2016 elections, keeping only to his words – despite information from his own intelligence community that Russia would have played an active role in the elections.

It's unclear whether Trump and Putin will save time for another face-to-face show in Paris, but it will be hard for both of them to miss each other at the world leaders' rally. The Kremlin announced this week that the two men would have a working lunch, but Trump said at a press conference on Wednesday that the two men would not meet until next month at the next G20 summit in Argentina .

Kremlin attache, Yuri Ushakov, told reporters The French government hopes that the French government hopes that the two world leaders will not separate from the rest of the group in order not to overshadow the commemorative events. reported the New York Times.