(AP)_ The Donald Trump administration is imposing sanctions on 19 Russians for alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. election, including 13 indicted by special counsel Robert Mueller.
The penalties also include the first use of new powers that Congress passed last year to punish Moscow for election meddling. Those targets include officials working for the Russian military intelligence agency, GRU.
The Treasury Department says the GRU and Russia’s military both interfered in the American election and were “directly responsible” for the NotPetya cyberattack that hit businesses across Europe in June 2017.
Those included in the Mueller indictment include Yevgeny Prigozhin, who’s become known as the chef to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The administration is also targeting the Internet Research Agency that Mueller says orchestrated much of the cybermeddling in the presidential election.
