Canada has slapped sanctions against Crimean two officials and the local oil and gas company in a move aimed at further isolating Russia economically and politically.

      In a statement, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said that Canada has made it “clear that we cannot sit by while Russia illegally occupies Ukraine, violating its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

      “Today, we are imposing sanctions on two additional individuals and on a Crimean oil and gas company. We remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine and will continue to work with allies and like-minded countries to apply pressure to Russia until it de-escalates the situation in Ukraine,” he added.

      According to the document, Canada is imposing economic sanctions and travel bans against the following two additional officials who bear responsibility for the crisis:

      • Valery Medvedev, Chair of the Sevastopol Electoral Commission

      • Mikhail Malyshev, Chair of the Crimean Electoral Commission

      Canada is also imposing economic sanctions against the following organization, which has been subjected to illegal expropriation:

      • Chornomornaftogaz

      Earlier, US warned Russia of further sanctions if Moscow does not “take steps to de-escalate in eastern Ukraine”.

      According to the official Twitter account of the State Department, John Kerry “expressed strong concern that attacks today by militias in Ukraine were orchestrated.”

      Militants are equipped with Russian weapons and the same uniforms as those worn by Russian forces that invaded Crimea, read the statement.

      Earlier, the US and the EU have introduced asset freezes and travel bans on a number of individuals and have vowed further action if Russia moved further into eastern Ukraine.