EU sanctions make it more difficult and expensive for Russia to continue its war of aggression against Ukraine
Three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of the sovereign and independent Ukraine, we have not seen the end of the war. And yet, one single action could end the war: that Russia withdraws its troops from the Ukrainian territory, whose border are recognised internationally.
On the third year mark of this unprovoked and unjustified aggression, the European Council, where the heads of state of the 27 EU Member States sit, adopted a wide-ranging 16th package of economic and individual restrictive measures. With this strong package of sanctions, the European Union aims to deprive Russia of funds to wage the war. The EU is responding with unity and determination to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to support Ukraine and its people.
The 16th package of economic and individual restrictive measures targets systemically important sectors of the Russian economy such as energy, trade, transport, infrastructure, and financial services.
It also adds further measures aimed at tackling circumvention. Out of 53 companies, 25 companies based in mainland China or Hong Kong have been involved in the circumvention of trade restrictions or have engaged in the procurement of sensitive items needed for instance for UAVs and missiles used for Russian military operations. These companies have been added to a list of reinforced export controls. Additionally, fully-fledged sanctions (travel ban, asset freeze, prohibition to make economic resources available) have been imposed on two Chinese actors (one company and an associated individual) responsible for providing satellite imagery to the Russian military.
The EU has provided early warning about future listings to Chinese authorities and sought to find solutions before the adoption of new packages. The EU has always been and will continue to be open to dialogue with Chinese authorities.
The EU continues to call on China to act more decisively vis-à-vis Russia not to prolong this unjust war. China is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and bears a key responsibility to uphold the UN Charter and the international rules based order.
The sanctions adopted by the European Council have been making it more difficult and expensive for Russia to continue its war of aggression against Ukraine, as every sanction package deprives the Kremlin of funds to wage war. The EU and its member states will maintain their intensive global outreach efforts and stay ready to step up pressure on Russia, including by adopting further sanctions.
More information on the 16th package of economic and individual restrictive measures (English):
More information on EU sanctions: www.sanctionsmap.eu
