U.S. business associations publicly oppose Obama due to anti-Russian sanctions

Barack Obama and Petro Poroshenko. Source: The White House

The largest business associations in the U.S. intend to publicly speak out against President Barack Obama, who is planning to impose new sanctions against Russia, reports the Russian business newspaper Vedomosti, citing Bloomberg.

On June 26, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers will publish in major U.S. media outlets an announcement warning that further sanctions against Russia will hurt American companies and workers, a source told Bloomberg.

According to the source, the document will be published in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

The announcement will emphasize that due to the sanctions, American companies are losing access to foreign markets and will yield opportunities to companies from other countries.

As stated in Ernst & Young’s report from 2013, U.S. companies are the largest investors in Russia, especially in the technology and financial sectors.

White House spokesman Laura Lucas Magnuson reported that the U.S. President’s administration “has private contacts with representatives of the business community and understands their concerns.” However, the White House can no longer pursue the same course of conduct with these business, she said.

The Bloomberg source reiterated that business representatives have warned of the risks the White House, the Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Commerce were taking with increasing sanctions.

Published in Russian at Vedomosti.

Read more: Can Russia sue the U.S. and the EU via the WTO over sanctions?

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