In brief: EU ambassadors preliminarily agreed on Wednesday, Nov. 11, to add 145 individuals and entities to the bloc’s Russia sanctions lists, including 50 Russian banks and companies helping Moscow’s shadow fleet, as well those connected to hybrid warfare activities and cyberattacks. EU foreign ministers are expected to formally approve the decision on Monday, Nov. 16.
EU ambassadors have preliminarily agreed to sanction 145 more individuals and companies tied to Moscow’s war effort, including 50 Russian banks and entities linked to hybrid warfare operations across Europe.
According to European Pravda on Wednesday, Nov. 11, the decision was reached at a meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) in Brussels, and is expected to be formally approved next week, on Monday, Nov. 16.
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“The sanctions lists for actions against the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine will include 12 individuals and 101 legal entities,” an EU diplomat told the Ukrainian outlet.
Any decision on sanctioning Russia requires unanimous support from all 27 member states, which caused repeated delays and last-minute compromises in some of the earlier rounds.
On Oct. 7, the EU approved sanctions against approximately 1,650 individuals and entities, primarily targeting Russia’s military-industrial complex and those involved in elections held in occupied parts of Ukraine.
Only a week prior, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) declared Russia’s State Duma elections illegitimate.
Banks, shadow fleet and hybrid operations
Most of the new designations fall under the EU’s main sanctions regime for undermining Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
Alongside the banks, that list will include several companies accused of supporting Russia’s shadow fleet – the tankers Moscow uses to export oil around Western price caps and restrictions.
Zelensky: Russia Seeks Freedom to Use Force, Not Genuine Security
The other listings fall under separate legal frameworks.
Under the EU’s regime for Russia’s hybrid activities, 30 individuals and one company will be added. One more entity will be listed under the bloc’s cyberattack sanctions, European Pravda reported.
Zelensky urges focus on arms productions
President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the push for tougher measures in a separate statement on Wednesday, saying that European sanctions remain essential to weakening Moscow’s war machine.
“This applies to both individual sanctions against Russian entities that work for Putin and his system, and to businesses through which Russia obtains scarce components, equipment, and machinery for the production of weapons,” he said, pointing to ballistic missiles, drones, and communication systems.
He called on Western partners to continue to focus on curbing Russia’s weapons output, describing it as one of the most effective ways to push the Kremlin toward a peace settlement.
“Our Ukrainian long-range sanctions are working, Russian arms production is within our reach, and most importantly, this needs to be supported by our partners legally, economically, and politically,” Zelensky added.
He made the remarks during a joint press conference alongside Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin in Dublin, only hours after trilateral negotiations with Russia and the US concluded in Abu Dhabi.
Senior US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are scheduled to meet Putin in Moscow on Nov. 12, before making their way to Ireland, where they will meet with Zelensky.
Previous dispute over two oligarchs
The latest round of sanctions follows an earlier dispute among several members regarding two delisted Russian oligarchs closely connected to Russian President Vladimir Putin – Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman.
Usmanov, an Uzbek-born Russian businessman and billionaire, built his fortune through investments in technology, metals and mining, and had been blacklisted since the beginning of Russia’s war in 2022.
Fridman is an Israeli-Russian businessman born in Ukraine and a cofounder of Alfa Bank, Russia’s largest non-state bank.
On Sept. 11, the EU failed to agree on extending sanctions after France joined Slovakia in demanding changes to the list of sanctioned individuals, asking for Fridman and Usmanov to be removed.
With talks stalled, the bloc extended the existing measures by one week on Sept. 14.
Throughout several EU ambassadors’ meetings, Slovakia reportedly opposed the renewal of sanctions on both oligarchs, while also requesting the six-month timeframe to remain in place.
Meanwhile, Paris framed its push to delist the oligarchs as a form of “political compromise.”
On Sept. 21, EU ambassadors finally reached an agreement.
Several countries imposing their own sanctions after delisting
In return for delistment of Usmanov and Fridman, restrictions on the remaining entities and individuals, including asset freezes and travel bans, were extended for another three years instead of the usual six or 12 months.
Riga then imposed its own financial and entry restrictions on both men, while pledging to use all available legal tools to keep their funds in Latvia frozen.
Estonia imposed national sanctions on both individuals as well. The UK took a step back from Brussels too, keeping its own sanctions on Usmanov and Fridman.
The EU previously adopted its 21st sanctions package in July, targeting additional vessels in Russia’s shadow fleet, financial institutions, and businesses supporting Moscow’s war effort.
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