Brussels, 16/02/2015 (Agence Europe) - As expected, on Monday 16 February, the European Union published a new blacklist of people and undertakings subject to sanctions for their involvement in the conflict in Ukraine. This list contains two Russian deputy defence ministers (see EUROPE 11252).
Arkady Bakhin and Anatoly Antonov, first deputy defence minister and deputy defence minister respectively, have been included on this list because they have contributed to “supporting the deployment of Russian troops in Ukraine”, according to the Council Regulation of 9 February on restrictive measures tackling action that has compromised or threatens the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.
Two members of the Russian Duma, Joseph Kobzon and Valery Rashkin, are also included in the list of people subject to a freezing of their assets and a travel ban in the EU.
Several senior political and military leaders from the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, a prosecutor, as well as rebel battalions have also been sanctioned.
In total, a further 19 individuals and 9 undertakings have been added to the list, which now contains 151 individuals in all and 37 undertakings.
This new list of targeted sanctions was decided by European Foreign Ministers meeting on 29 January, following the bombing of the city of Mariupol (South-East Ukraine) by pro-Russian separatists. These new sanctions are initially expected to enter into force on 9 February but the Council decided to defer their application by a week, given the diplomatic negotiations currently being carried out in an effort to put in place a ceasefire. (Lionel Changeur)