U.S. considers trade restrictions targeting Russia’s strategic sectors

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is considering barring tech exports to Russia as a way of targeting its strategic sectors if it invades Ukraine, a senior administration official said Tuesday.

These “novel export controls” would be imposed in addition to sanctions and would have a similar, damaging affect, the official said. Under the plan, the administration would block Russia from obtaining U.S.-originated software and technology in order to harm key economic sectors, such as artificial intelligence, aerospace and quantum computing, the official said.

The goal would be to deliberately target sectors that Russia President Vladimir Putin has championed as a way for Russia to diversify its economy beyond oil and gas.

The news of the plans come as Russia held military drills across its territory Tuesday amid concerns it could invade Ukraine. The administration official suggested that the U.S. and European Union are unified in their position on imposing possible sanctions on Russia, describing them as unprecedented measures with massive consequences. The financial sanctions could be incredibly “potent” in ways that affect Putin’s calculus, the official said.

Ahead of Russia’s military exercises, the Pentagon placed 8,500 U.S. troops on “heightened alert” to assist with the defense of NATO allies. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reports Monday that no decisions had been made yet “to deploy forces from the United States at this time.”

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that any decision to deploy military forces would be made in coordination with NATO and other allies.

“Just to be clear, there is no intention or interest or desire by the president to send troops to Ukraine,” she said.

When asked whether a Russian invasion of Ukraine was imminent, Psaki said, “No one can get into the mind of President Putin or Russian leadership.”

“So while of course our preferred path is diplomacy and we can’t predict where the mind of President Putin is, we’ve certainly seen aggressive actions and preparations increasing at the border,” she said, referring to Russia’s military buildup at the Ukraine border and reported misinformation efforts.

President Joe Biden also spoke with European leaders Monday on a video call about joint efforts to deter further Russian aggression. He said they discussed “preparations to impose severe economic costs on Russia and reinforce security on the eastern flank.”

A bipartisan congressional delegation, meanwhile, left Tuesday for Ukraine, led by Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. They will meet with representatives from NATO, the EU and U.S. allies in Brussels to “to discuss the security situation in Eastern Europe and the buildup of Russian troops along Ukraine’s border and in Belarus,” according to a preview of the trip. The lawmakers will also meet with senior Ukrainian officials in Kyiv “to discuss the security situation and reinforce U.S. support for Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

Two classified briefings will be provided to congressional leadership aides and committee staff on the situation in Ukraine on Tuesday, Democratic aides said. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have both requested all-member bipartisan briefings on the situation involving Russia and Ukraine next week. Lawmakers are currently on recess and home in their districts this week.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said at a news briefing in Kentucky on Tuesday that he had spoken with the White House about the situation, and what he was hearing of the administration’s plans since the weekend is “encouraging,” including that it was “prepared to take steps before an incursion and not afterwards.”

“But it appears to me the administration moving in the right direction,” he said.

Over the weekend, the State Department said that Americans in Ukraine should consider leaving the country. Non-emergency diplomatic employees were allowed to depart and eligible family members were ordered to evacuate.

Julie Tsirkin contributed.

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