President Biden announces actions against Russia

President Joe Biden on Thursday announced U.S. actions against Russia, noting that he had informed Russian President Vladimir Putin this week that the U.S. would soon respond as it had been "concluded that they had interfered in the election and Solar Winds was totally ... inappropriate." 

"Today I have approved several steps including expulsion of several Russian officials as a consequence of their actions," Biden said. "I've also signed an executive order authorizing new measures including sanctions to address specific harmful actions that Russia has taken against U.S. interest."

Biden said that he told his Russian counterpart that while the U.S. could have opted to take more extensive actions, he instead elected "to be proportionate."

Biden is proposing that the two leaders meet for a summit in Europe during the summer.

Part of an executive order issued by the president declares: "I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, find that specified harmful foreign activities of the Government of the Russian Federation — in particular, efforts to undermine the conduct of free and fair democratic elections and democratic institutions in the United States and its allies and partners; to engage in and facilitate malicious cyber-enabled activities against the United States and its allies and partners; to foster and use transnational corruption to influence foreign governments; to pursue extraterritorial activities targeting dissidents or journalists; to undermine security in countries and regions important to United States national security; and to violate well-established principles of international law, including respect for the territorial integrity of states — constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States. I hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat."