The United States and its European allies slappedmore than two dozen Russian government officials, executives and companies with new sanctions Monday as punishment for their country´s actions in Ukraine.
In Moscow, there was relief that the sanctions were not as far-ranging as feared.The measures, including asset freezes and visa bans, affect people close to the Kremlin, and Western leaders hope those hurt by the sanctions will pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to limit his reach in Ukraine and de-escalate the crisis there.
However, the Russian leader himself was not among those targeted, and Obama administration officials acknowledged there was no expectation that Putin would quickly change course.
