US President Joe Biden has announced new sanctions against Russia, vowing to impose a “severe cost” on the country for its invasion of Ukraine .

Speaking from the White House on Thursday, Biden voiced support for Ukraine and said the sanctions package will limit international trade with Moscow and penalise Vladimir Putin and his inner circle.

“Putin is the aggressor; Putin chose this war, and now he and his country will bear the consequences,” Biden said.

The sanctions target four Russian banks that hold more than $1 trillion in assets, including the country’s largest bank. “That means every asset they have in America will be frozen,” the US president said.

Biden also said the sanctions will target wealthy Russians close to Putin. “We will keep up this drumbeat of those designations against corrupt billionaires in the days ahead,” he added.

The US move comes after Russia launched a large-scale military operation in Ukraine late on Wednesday after a months-long impasse in the region that saw Moscow amass as many as 200,000 troops near the Ukrainian border.

European countries began imposing sanctions on Russia over the invasion on Thursday, with the UK announcing measures targeting dozens of Russian banks, businesses and wealthy elites and banning Russia’s national airline Aeroflot from the country’s airspace.

Putin said Russia is aiming for the “demilitarisation and denazification of Ukraine” but does not plan on occupying the country. Russian forces bombed targets across Ukraine throughout the night.

The European Union also announced  extensive new sanctions on Russia. The sanctions will target areas including the financial sector, energy, transport, and visas for the Russian elite

The sanctions do not cover the import of Russian gas into the EU. Questioned about this the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen der Leyen said they were urgently looking at how to wean Europe off its dependence on Russian energy.

At the same time, French President Emmanuel Macron, said at least 300 million rand of aid would be offered to Ukraine, as well as military equipment.

The package of massive and targeted sanctions approved tonight shows how united the EU is.

First, this package includes financial sanctions, targeting 70% of the Russian banking market and key state owned companies, including in defence. https://t.co/iKVGfnafKp

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) February 25, 2022