On Monday 20 March, the Council of the EU said in a press release that it had added, by written procedure, four high-ranking military officials to the list of people targeted by the restrictive measures set up by the EU against the Syrian regime.
The EU took out sanctions against these military officials due to "their role in the use of chemical weapons against the civilian population, in line with the EU's policy to fight the proliferation and use of chemical weapons", the Council stated. The legal acts will be published in the Official Journal of the EU on 21 March.
Initially, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) was due to impose sanctions on people linked to the use of chemical weapons. However, faced with opposition from Russia and China, the Europeans, led by their permanent members of the UNSC – France and the UK – decided to take autonomous measures.
This decision brings to 239 the total number of people targeted by a travel ban and an assets freeze on EU territory. These people are deemed responsible for the violent repression against the civilian population in Syria, benefiting from or supporting the regime, and/or being associated with such persons. In addition, 67 entities now subject to an assets freeze. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)