EU Approves Nearly 1,600 New Sanctions Against Russia

BRUSSELS: European Union foreign ministers have approved nearly 1,600 new sanctions listings targeting Russia’s military-industrial complex, in the bloc’s largest single expansion of its sanctions list since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said more than half of the new listings are linked to the production chain for ballistic missiles. She said the measures would make it significantly harder, slower and more expensive for Russia to produce weapons used against Ukrainians.
The new listings include 826 Russian companies and 743 individuals, covering major shipyards, submarine builders and naval repair facilities. The additions bring the EU’s Russia-related sanctions blacklist to around 3,500 entries.
The measures include freezing the assets of listed individuals and entities, banning them from travelling to EU member states and prohibiting EU citizens and companies from providing them with funds or economic resources, directly or indirectly.
The EU Council also extended its sanctions framework targeting the proliferation and use of chemical weapons by five years, until October 30, 2031. Individual listings under that framework were renewed for one year, until October 30, 2027.
The chemical-weapons regime currently applies to 31 individuals and six entities. Their assets are frozen, while EU citizens and companies are barred from making funds or economic resources available to them.