The United States will deepen and broaden sanctions in Russia's financial, energy, and defense sectors "in response to its illegal actions in Ukraine," U.S. President Barack Obama said on Thursday.

These measures will increase Russia's political isolation and the economic costs to Russia, especially in areas of importance to Russian President Vladimir Putin and those close to him, said Obama, adding that his administration will outline the specifics of the new sanctions on Friday.

The United States is implementing the new round of punitive measures "in light of Russia's actions to further destabilize Ukraine over the last month, including through the presence of heavily armed Russian forces in eastern Ukraine," Obama said in a statement.

The U.S. move came after the European Union announced restrictive measures against Russia's financial and energy sectors earlier in the day. The new sanctions came despite that the Ukrainian government and rebels inked a ceasefire agreement on Friday in Minsk, capital of Belarus. The deal was expected to pave the way for political settlement of the Ukraine crisis.

"We are watching closely developments since the announcement of the ceasefire and agreement in Minsk, but we have yet to see conclusive evidence that Russia has ceased its efforts to destabilize Ukraine," Obama said.

The U.S. president said he encouraged Putin to work with Ukraine and other international partners, within the context of the Minsk agreement and without setting unreasonable conditions, to reach a lasting resolution to the conflict.

Obama reiterated that the sanctions against Russia can be rolled back if it fully implements its commitments, but also warned of imposing tougher costs on Russia if it continues its " aggressive actions and violations of international law." Endite

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