'We have to see concrete actions and not just words,' Obama says. Obama: Russia failed to act

President Barack Obama slapped Russia with another batch of economic sanctions on Wednesday for its incursions into Ukraine, including new restrictions on Russian government leaders, major banks and even the maker of the iconic Kalashnikov assault rifle.

Among those sanctioned were a top Russian spymaster, a Ukrainian separatist leader, a top lawmaker and Moscow’s minister for the Crimea, which Russian troops seized in an armed incursion earlier this year. The Treasury Department also sanctioned Russian arms manufacturers, parts of energy companies and financial institutions.


“We have to see concrete actions and not just words that Russia is in fact committed to end this conflict along the Russia-Ukraine border,” Obama said in the White House press briefing room. Thus far, he continued, “Russia has failed to take any of the steps” that the Obama administration called for to de-escalate the situation in Ukraine.

( TRANSCRIPT: Obama's full foreign policy remarks)

Obama also addressed the contested elections in Afghanistan, the ongoing talks on Iran and instability in Israel, and spoke more broadly about the country’s foreign policy challenges.

As the July 20 deadline for nuclear talks with Iran approaches, Obama began making the case for the widely anticipated extension of the negotiations. “Based on consultations with Secretary [of State John] Kerry and my national security team, it’s clear we’ve made real progress,” he said. In the coming days, the administration will consult with Congress and work with its allies in the P5+1 to “determine whether additional time is necessary to extend negotiations.”

On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the administration is working through diplomatic channels to try to secure a cease fire between Israel and Hamas, Obama said. But “Israel has a right to defend itself from rocket attacks that terrorize the Israeli people,” he said, adding that he’s “proud” that the Iron Dome system has protected Israeli lives.

“In conclusion, I’ll point out the obvious: we live in a complex world and at a challenging time,” he said.

The administration has already leveled multiple rounds of sanctions against Russia and others supporting its incursion into Ukraine. The latest round of action is “a significant step,” a senior administration official told reporters on a conference call announcing the sanctions, and is aimed at pressuring Russian President Vladimir Putin to take actions that he has so far resisted. In the case of the banks, for example, they will no longer be able to do business with U.S. firms to finance their operations. The Obama administration could expand those restrictions if Moscow does not deescalate the crisis, the official warned.

( Also on POLITICO: Vladimir Putin urges Ukraine compromise)

In the case of the eight arms makers sanctioned on Wednesday, the companies make everything from “small arms to mortar shells to tanks,” the official said, including the AK-47 rifle and its many descendants in use in militaries across the world.

Administration officials detailed what they said were the economic consequences that have already squeezed Russia since the U.S. began its sanctions over the Ukraine crisis, and said this would only pull the straitjacket tighter.

“The actions we have taken thus far have had a significant impact on the Russian economy, and steps we have taken today … will only exacerbate that situation.”

Another senior administration official said Russian President Vladimir Putin bears the responsibility for bringing the harm to his economy, and also has the power to alleviate it. Russia must pull back its troops, stop fomenting trouble inside of Ukraine and agree to an international resolution, the administration says. If it agrees, the U.S. and its European allies will relax the sanctions.

(Also on POLITICO: U.S. ramps up sanctions amid fresh Russian moves)

The White House’s announcement Wednesday followed warnings earlier in the day from the Pentagon that 10,000 to 12,000 Russian combat troops are massing inside their border with Ukraine. The force isn’t as large as an earlier one said to number about 40,000 troops at the peak of the crisis, but does represent a spike from the force of about 1,000 troops a few weeks ago, officials say.

Defense Department spokesman Col. Steve Warren also told reporters at the Pentagon that the U.S. believes Russia continues to ship heavy weapons to separatist fighters inside Ukraine. Administration officials won’t say outright they believe that Russia has supplied Ukraine with air defense systems or whether Russian troops have attacked Ukrainian aircraft from inside their border, but either way, they blame Moscow.

A senior official told reporters that a Ukrainian cargo aircraft shot down this month was an altitude that could only have been reached by “sophisticated weapons systems.”