European Union (EU) member states agreed on Wednesday, the 21st of February, on a 13th sanctions package against Russia, due to come into force on Saturday, the two-year mark of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, imposing bans on nearly 200 companies and individuals, reports Reuters.
In the new package, 193 organisations and individuals accused of helping Moscow obtain arms or being involved in the trafficking and abduction of Ukrainian children will be added to a list of those banned from entering or doing business in the EU. Both these individuals and companies will also have their assets frozen.
But no new measures will be imposed against specific sectors of the economy,
EU diplomatic sources said.
The new measures target Russia’s military supply chain, with a particular focus on drones. Twenty-seven companies, mostly Russian but also three Chinese and one Hong Kong company, were included in Annex IV, banning European companies from selling dual-use items to them.
The package will be formally approved on the 24th of February.
Meanwhile, the UK IMPOSED sanctions on six individuals
responsible for the prison where Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny died last week.
Six Russian prison chiefs, the head and five deputies, will be banned from entering the UK and will have their assets frozen, UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in a statement.
Cameron said that the Russian authorities considered Alexei Navalny a threat and had repeatedly tried to silence him. Cameron underlined the repressive nature of the Russian system, saying that those responsible for the ill-treatment of Navalny would be held accountable.
The US will also announce on Friday a broad package of sanctions against Russia over Navalny’s death and the two-year war in Ukraine, US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday.
Western leaders claim that the Russian authorities, including President Vladimir Putin, are responsible for Navalny’s death, which the Kremlin denies.
Also read: Estonia prevents Russian hybrid operation, detains ten people
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