Another well-known source tells CNN that the government is expected to take measures against Russia on Thursday and coordinate with European allies.
The sanctions target intelligence agencies and government officials and entities involved in the SolarWinds cyber-breach, the officials said.
These actions will be rolled out in the form of an executive order from President Joe Biden, as well as sanctions coordinated with the State Department and the Treasury Department, officials said. State Department officials have called US allies and are preparing for possible Russian responses.
It is unclear whether these sanctions will be enough to change Russia’s behavior, officials said.
The White House and the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Biden administration pledged to respond to Russia’s aggression against the US and its allies in the early days of Biden’s presidency. Biden confronted Russian President Vladimir Putin on their first phone call on a range of issues, from a recent massive cyber attack to the suspected poisoning of the country’s leading opposition member. And the Biden government has already introduced sanctions for detaining and poisoning opposition leader Alexey Navalny.
Hitting back to Russia is also because the Biden administration has tried to keep the channels of diplomatic communication open and to cooperate with Russia when it is in the interest of the US. Biden showed that approach this week when he proposed a summit with Putin during their second phone call.
The Biden administration also recently decided to keep the Trump-appointed US ambassador at work in Moscow for the foreseeable future and invited Putin to a climate change conference later this month.