U.S. sanctions dig deeper into Russian energy sector as fighting continues in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Kremlin fighters remain active. UPI/Ivan Vakolenko MOSCOW, Aug. 3 (UPI) — U.S. sanctions extending deeper into the Russian energy sector prompted legal threats from Kremlin-backed entities but come as no surprise, an official said. The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control targeted Ukrainian and Russian business leaders, including Russia gas trader Gennady Timchenko and Boris Rotenberg, a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin. OFAC Director John Smith said the sanctions are aimed at encouraging Russia to honor peace-keeping commitments signed earlier this year regarding conflict in eastern Ukraine. Sanctions, he said, are part of the Western-backed effort to keep pressure on Russia for violating international laws and “fueling the conflict in eastern Ukraine.” Russia’s energy sector, a key source of government revenue, has been the target of Western sanctions since conflict […]