According to an official familiar with the matter, the US is preparing a new round of sanctions on Russia and China for human rights abuses by both countries.
The sanctions against Russia were expected to focus on the country's efforts to procure weapons, especially drones, from countries including Iran, which are also under heavy US sanctions. The penalties against Chinese entities will focus on that country's fishing industry, the official said, who asked not to be named to discuss actions that haven't yet been announced.
A majority of the sanctions that will be unveiled Friday will be levied under the Global Magnitsky Act, a law that expanded the use of economic sanctions to cases of human rights violations. The measure is named after Sergei Magnitsky, a lawyer who died in Russian custody after accusing officials in that country of corruption.
A spokesman for the US Treasury Department wouldn't say anything Thursday. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier on the sanctions.
The US has levied hundreds of sanctions against individuals, companies and government entities in Russia. Almost all of the Russian legislature is subject to Western sanctions, and several high-ranking government officials, including the head of the country's central bank, have been sanctioned.
The measures have weakened the country's economy, with officials projecting a contraction over the next two years. In a testimony from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Assistant US Treasury Secretary Elizabeth Rosenberg pointed out a 35% drop in Russia's stock market since the start of the war, and told senators that Russia has had to turn to Iran and North Korea for weapons because of the export controls imposed by the US and its allies.
They have failed to compel Russia to give up its invasion and have had little to no effect on Russia's ability to fund its war with energy sales.
A cap on the price of Russian oil has been imposed by Western officials as a measure that will restrict Russia's economic might while making it harder for the country to prosecute its war in Ukraine. The concept has yet to be fully tested with oil prices stuck at lower levels due to concerns about demand in the coming months.
The United States has championed efforts to fight illegal fishing in the Pacific as part of a push to demonstrate the benefits of its continued presence in the region. Coastal states have complained about overfishing by Chinese fleets, sometimes supported by armed coastguard vessels.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry didn't respond immediately to a request for comment.
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