WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- President Bush signed an executive order Friday expanding U.S. sanctions against Zimbabwe , the White House said . About 200 victims of election violence seek safety outside the U.S. Embassy in Harare , Zimbabwe , this month . `` The new executive order significantly enhances our ability to designate individuals in and entities connected to the Mugabe regime , '' Bush said in a written statement that calls the Zimbabwean government under president Robert Mugabe `` illegitimate . '' Just after the announcement , the Treasury Department said it has designated for sanctions 17 entities , including three government-owned or controlled companies used by Mugabe and his government `` to illegally siphon revenue and foreign exchange from the Zimbabwean people , '' as well as one individual . `` This action is a direct result of the Mugabe regime 's continued politically motivated violence , disregarding calls from the Southern African Development Community , the African Union and the United Nations to halt the attacks , '' the White House said . `` The regime has also continued its ban against NGO activities that would provide assistance to the suffering and vulnerable people of Zimbabwe . No regime should ignore the will of its own people and calls from the international community without consequences . '' The U.S. has been pushing for sanctions against Zimbabwe since Mugabe ignored a U.N. Security Council appeal to postpone a presidential runoff election June 27 . The vote initially was intended to be a runoff between Mugabe and opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangirai , who did not win the presidency outright in the general election , according to government tallies . But Tsvangirai , of the Movement for Democratic Change , withdrew just before the vote , saying Mugabe 's supporters had orchestrated a campaign of beatings , intimidation and murders against Tsvangirai supporters . Earlier this month , Russia and China vetoed a Security Council resolution pushed by the United States , Britain and France that would have imposed international sanctions on Mugabe and senior members of his government . Bush said last week he was `` displeased '' at the vetoes , but the Treasury and State Departments were working on potential U.S. action . Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer told members of Congress last week that more than 100 people have been murdered , more than 3,000 have been injured by beatings or torture and more than 30,000 have been driven from their homes because of violence that broke out after the general election . Entities designated by the Treasury Department include Minerals Marketing Corp. of Zimbabwe , the company that serves as the sole marketing and export agent for all minerals mined in Zimbabwe except gold and silver ; Zimbabwe Mining Development Corp. ; and Zimbabwe Iron and Steel Co. , among others . The individual named is Thamer Bin Saeed Ahmed al-Shanfari . The Treasury Department said he is an Omani national who has close ties to Mugabe and his top officials and uses his company , Oryx Natural Resources , to `` enable Mugabe ... to maintain access to , and derive personal benefit from , various mining ventures in the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Under the sanctions , any assets tied to al-Shanfari or to the designated companies that are within U.S. jurisdictions must be frozen , and people living in the United States are prohibited from doing business with them . On Monday , Mugabe and Tsvangirai signed an agreement that paves the way for power-sharing talks to take place in the next few weeks . They will be mediated by South African President Thabo Mbeki , as a representative of the Southern African Development Community , and Jean Ping , chairman of the African Union Commission . Bush said Friday the United States is ready to provide a `` substantial assistance package , development aid and normalization with international financial institutions '' should those talks result in a new government `` that reflects the will of the Zimbabwean people . '' In the meantime , the president said he is authorizing the use of up to $ 2.5 million from the U.S . Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund to assist Zimbabwean refugees and those displaced by the violence . In addition , he said the United States will continue efforts to provide food and medical care to Zimbabweans .
U.S. President Bush signs order expanding sanctions against Zimbabwe . In written statement , Bush calls Robert Mugabe 's government `` illegitimate '' Russia , China have vetoed U.N. resolution calling for international sanctions . Mugabe , Tsvangirai have signed agreement paving way for power-sharing talks .