The Council of the European Union has decided to extend the economic sanctions related to the banking, financial and energy sectors of Russia until July 31, 2023, the organization’s website says.
The EU Council clarified that sanctions, first applied in 2014 in response to Russia’s actions to destabilize the situation in Ukraine, have been significantly expanded since February 2022 in connection with “unprovoked and unjustified Russian military aggression against Ukraine.”
Currently, these restrictive measures consist of a wide range of sectoral measures, including restrictions on trade, finance, technology and dual-use goods, industry, transport and luxury goods.
The sanctions also cover the ban on the import or maritime transport of crude oil and certain petroleum products from Russia to the EU. In addition, these restrictions include the disconnection of several Russian banks from the SWIFT international money transfer system and the suspension of TV channels and the termination of the issuance of licenses to some Russian media.
Since the start of full-scale Russian aggression in Ukraine, the EU has introduced nine new packages of sanctions that impose restrictions on 1,300 individuals and 120 legal entities.
In February 2023, the EU is preparing to introduce the tenth package of anti-Russian sanctions, which, according to Reuters, is proposed to include restrictions on Russia’s nuclear sector, in particular against Rosatom.
Why, despite the sanctions, less than 10% of Western companies left the Russian Federation with the start of the war, the economist explains:
