(NewsNation) — As the United States continues to hammer Russia with sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, some are wondering if certain ideas are going too far.

In a recent article in The New Republic, Matt Ford argued that the sanctions — specifically cultural ones — may be doing more harm than good.

“There have also been public calls for top Russian athletes like the NHL’s Alex Ovechkin to take a more vocal stance against the Russian government,” wrote Ford.

While Ovechkin spoke out against the war, he did not explicitly condemn Russian President Vladimir Putin for the invasion. Now, simply because of where they were born, some Russian athletes are receiving death threats.

On NewsNation’s “Dan Abrams Live,” Ford cautioned against levying sanctions against Russians in the United States.

“We have to look at Russian students,” he said. “There were calls by members of Congress to exclude them from American universities. These are students who could go back to Russia and talk about the virtues of liberal democracy and talk about that back home. Instead, we risk alienating and attacking them.”

Ford believes the most effective sanctions likely target Russian oligarchs as opposed to cultural figures and Russians living abroad.

“The Russian oligarchs are in a good position. By that I mean they have the ability to influence policy and politics in Russia,” he said. “Do average, ordinary Russians, the ones who may have sent their student to a school in the United States … they don’t have a say. But the oligarchs can change Putin’s mind.”

President Joe Biden announced Friday the U.S. will move to revoke “most favored nation” trade status for Russia over its invasion of Ukraine along with banning several imported goods. The move is in conjunction with the European Union and the Group of Seven countries.

Biden said he will also continue targeting Russian oligarchs as, “They must share in the pain of these sanctions.”