US sanctions pressure on Russia will not let up
Significance One bill would prohibit the US government from ever recognising the 2014 annexation of Crimea. Two others instruct the Director of National Intelligence to report on President Vladimir Putin's wealth and on Russian efforts to spread disinformation and undermine the stability of European allies. The fourth is a resolution condemning Putin and subordinates for the 2015 killing of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov. These measures come as larger sanction packages are under discussion. Impacts A proposed US boycott of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum in June will mark a further downward turn in relations. The EU will retain existing sanctions but new measures mirroring US actions are unlikely. Moscow will focus on replacing Western technological imports with Chinese alternatives and domestic manufacture.