‘Do the right thing’: How US, allies united to punish Putin

By JOSH BOAK
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden quietly dispatched a team of financial experts to NATO headquarters in Belgium just days before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. What emerged from the meetings was an export ban and the groundwork to immobilize about half the foreign holdings of Russia’s central bank. U.S. officials say the resulting sanctions should ultimately help to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin. When there was a deadlock, U.S. negotiators would put Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on the phone and her message was, “Do the right thing.” Everyone signed on — and before the invasion. Raimondo says what ultimately drove the agreement and the fast timeline was the threat of Putin’s imminent attack on Ukraine.