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A multinational effort aimed at punishing Russian oligarchs for Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has so far blocked and frozen more than $30 billion of their financial assets in the first 100 days of its operation, the U.S. Treasury Department says.
That’s on top of the yachts, other vessels and luxury real estate that have been impounded as well as $300 billion in Russian Central Bank funds that have been immobilized, the department said.
"The Russian Elites, Proxies, and Oligarchs (REPO) Task Force has leveraged extensive multilateral coordination to block or freeze more than $30 billion worth of sanctioned Russians’ assets, freeze or seize sanctioned persons’ high-value goods, and heavily restrict sanctioned Russians’ access to the international financial system," the Treasury Department said in a statement.
"REPO members have achieved these successes through close and extensive national and international coordination and collaboration," it added.
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The superyacht Amadea, a $325 million vessel, arrived in Honolulu harbor after it was seized by the United States. (AP Photo/Audrey McAvoy)
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Attorney General Merrick Garland convened the REPO task force in March in conjunction with a number of other countries, which work together to investigate and prosecute oligarchs and other individuals allied with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The European Commission has set up its own Freeze and Seize Task Force to work in conjunction with the REPO group.
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Tajikistan's President Emomali Rakhmon during their meeting in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, on Tuesday, June 28. (Alexander Shcherbak, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP / Associated Press)
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"Where appropriate and possible, REPO members are undertaking efforts to update or expand and implement their respective legal frameworks that enable the freezing, seizure, forfeiture and/or disposal of assets, for example within criminal law," the Treasury Department said. "These efforts better position members to achieve REPO’s objectives."
A pedestrian passes the entrance to Russia's central bank, also known as Bank Rossi, in Moscow, Russia, in March 2013. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
"Together, we will ensure that our sanctions continue to impose costs on Russia for its unprovoked and continuing aggression in Ukraine and to prevent funds and economic resources from being provided to or for the benefit of designated persons," the department also said. "As we undertake this work, we are seeking to maximize the impact of sanctions on designated persons and entities while guarding against spillover that affects global commodities markets and food supplies, which Russia has disrupted by choosing and continuing to wage war."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.