Washington, D.C. ­– U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, issued the following statement on the Trump administration yesterday releasing five new sanctions designations under the 2012 Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law and Accountability Act. Senators McCain and Ben Cardin (D-MD) co-authored the legislation:

“I commend the administration’s decision to sanction five new individuals under the 2012 Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law and Accountability Act. Corruption and human rights abuses have become rampant in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, and the Magnitsky Act serves as important tool in holding Putin and his cronies accountable. I hope that these sanctions will provide the Russian people with a small measure of justice that they are denied under the Putin regime, and bolster the efforts of those who carry on the fight for freedom in Russia and around the world.  

“The designation of these individuals serves as a strong message to other would-be human rights abusers that they will face consequences for violating the basic rights and freedoms of the Russian people. It is important that the United States continue to uphold the values embodied by Sergei Magnitsky and enshrined in the Magnitsky Act: human rights, rule of law, and justice. I look forward to continue working with the administration to ensure robust implementation of this vitally important law.”

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