The administration of US President Joe Biden has imposed sanctions on seven Russian officials in response to the poisoning and imprisonment of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

This came as part of a series of steps announced by the new administration, Tuesday, in its first significant move against Moscow. Senior administration officials stressed that this was being done in coordination with allies such as the European Union, which also announced sanctions on Tuesday.

During a telephone call with journalists Tuesday, officials reported that the Treasury Department is imposing sanctions on seven senior members of the Russian Government.

One official said that American foreign affairs reflected sanctions imposed by the former European Union and the United Kingdom, and expanded sanctions under the Chemical and Biological Weapons Act, first imposed because of the poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal.

One official said that "the tone and content of our talks with Russia, and our talks about Russia, will be quite different from what you saw during the previous administration."