30/06/2022 (Agence Europe) – On Thursday, 30 June, the Council of the EU adopted a decision to add the violation of restrictive measures taken by the EU to the list of criminal offences that appear in the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (see EUROPE 12960/6) and asked the European Parliament to approve the draft text that the European Commission presented on 25 May (see EUROPE 12968/28). Once the European Parliament has given its consent and internal national procedures have been finalised, the decision can be formally adopted unanimously by the Council of the EU. Secondly, this addition will make it possible to adopt a directive that contains minimum rules concerning the definition of criminal offences and penalties for violating EU restrictive measures. The aim is to ensure that sanctions are enforced to a similar degree across the EU and to deter attempts to circumvent or violate the measures. (CG)