Brussels, 29/07/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 29 July, the ambassadors of member states to the European Union adopted economic sanctions against Russia in relation to the Ukrainian crisis, according to a number of diplomatic sources. EU companies and nationals will no longer be able to buy or sell new debts, shares or similar instruments with a maturity of greater than 90 days to or from banks owned by the Russian state, development banks, their subsidiaries or individuals acting on behalf of these. The EU is also believed to be planning to set in place an embargo on weapons and related materials on the joint EU list and to ban exports of dual-use goods and technologies for military purposes. Certain energy-related equipment and technologies will also be made subject to prior authorisation. Export certificates will be denied for products used in the exploration and production of deep-water oil, the extraction of shale gas and oil exploration in the Arctic. According to a diplomat, the measures will not be retroactive. The sanctions will be revised constantly.
This political agreement will now be the subject of a written procedure launched this Wednesday to conclude on 31 July, for publication in the Official Journal on the evening of the same day. The sanctions will enter into force on the day after their publication, 1 August. As we were going to press, a statement by President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy was being prepared, according to a European source.
In a telephone conference on Monday 28 July, French President François Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister David Cameron, President of the Italian Council, Matteo Renzi and American President Barack Obama confirmed “their intention of adopting new measures against Russia”, according to the Elysée Palace (our translation). “The leaders agreed that the international community should impose additional costs on Russia and, in particular, that the ambassadors of the whole of the EU should agree on a tough package of sectorial sanctions as quickly as possible”, explained 10 Downing Street, adding that they had agreed that the EU and the US should continue to work together to bring pressure to bear on Russia to change course and commit to a peaceful resolution of the crisis. The United States is also reported to be preparing additional sanctions against Russia.
Names and entities added and additional measures against Crimea
Also on Monday 28 July, the ambassadors agreed to tighten up the targeted sanctions against individuals and entities in relation to the Ukrainian crisis. The ambassadors “decided to add other individuals and entities supporting or benefiting from Russian decision-makers ('associates') to the list of those subject to a freezing of assets and a ban on entering the EU. [They] also concluded an agreement to target other entities responsible for actions against the territorial integrity of Ukraine”, an EU source explained. According to a number of sources, eight individuals and three or four entities will be targeted. According to a diplomatic source quoted by AFP, the eight individuals include four Russian businessmen with close links to Russian President Vladimir Putin. There is one bank among the entities to be targeted. Not counting these new individuals and entities, 87 individuals and 20 entities are under restrictive measures due to their role in the Ukrainian crisis.
The ambassadors also approved new measures to restrict trade and investment with and in Crimea and Sebastopol, on the grounds of the non-recognition of their annexation to Russia. “These restrictive measures will stop investment in certain sectors in Crimea and Sebastopol, such as the creation, acquisition or development of infrastructure in transport, telecommunications and the energy, oil and gas investment and mineral exploitation sectors”, a European source stated. The measures also include a ban on exporting principal equipment for these sectors to Crimea or Sebastopol. The EU has already banned imports of products from Crimea and Sebastopol, with the exception of those with certificates of origin issued by the Ukrainian government, and brought in a ban on the direct or indirect provision of financial and insurance services related to the import of these goods (see EUROPE 11106).
The legal acts stemming from these measures are to be adopted by written procedure on Wednesday 30 July, and published in the Official Journal on the evening of the same day.
On 28 July, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that “sanctions rarely achieved their objectives, and they will not achieve their aim in the case of Russia”. “I can assure you that we will overcome the problems which will occur in certain sectors of the economy. It is also highly likely that we will become more independent and more confident in our strength, which will also be beneficial”, he told a press conference (our translation). (CG)