On Monday 12 October, the EU Council formally adopted new sanctions targeting 826 Russian companies and 743 of their executives, the largest number of listings ever adopted at one time by the European Union. The total number of individuals and entities listed under the sanctions regime relating to Ukraine’s territorial integrity is approaching 4,600 (see EUROPE 13954/17).
The companies concerned supply essential components for Russia’s production of missiles, drones and aircraft. They operate in sectors including electronics, communications, aeronautics, satellite systems, explosives, munitions, optics and navigation. According to the EU, the targeted suppliers have a combined annual turnover of at least €20 billion and employ more than 250,000 people.
The designated executives include Viktor Aleksandrovich Kalinin, (Motovilikhinskie zavody); Igor Vladimirovich Savkov, (Tambovskij zavod Elektropribor); Oleg Viktorovich Maksenkov, (Nauchno-proizvodstvennyj kompleks bortovye intellektualnye sistemy); and Ilya Viktorovich Pupin, Aleksandr Sergeevich Ivanov, Igor Yurevich Zubakov and Evgeniy Pavlovich Zolotnitskiy, who are linked to electronics, instrumentation and mechanical engineering companies.
The listed individuals and entities (https://aeur.eu/f/nvk ) are subject to an asset freeze. It is prohibited to make funds or economic resources available to them, directly or indirectly. The individuals are also banned from entering the EU.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas welcomed on Monday “the single largest expansion of our sanctions list since Russia started its war”. More than half of the new listings are linked to the ballistic missile production chain.
German Minister of State for Europe Gunther Krichbaum indicated in Luxembourg on Monday that the measures specifically target drone manufacturers and other players in Russia’s military industry. He asserted that their effectiveness was “guaranteed”.
Maintaining pressure. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot raised the prospect of preparing a 22nd package of sanctions against Russia in the coming weeks. He also stated that sanctions had deprived Russia of “the equivalent of €500 billion in resources” that could have funded the war. Furthermore, France wants to step up efforts against the ‘shadow fleet’ used by Russia to circumvent sanctions. An international conference dedicated to the issue is scheduled to take place in Paris this autumn.
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said the sanctions adopted did not go far enough. He called on the EU to recognise that Russian military intelligence, the GRU, acts as a terrorist organisation.
The new sanctions follow US President Donald Trump’s announcement of an agreement with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, regarding the supply of Russian diesel to the United States. This announcement has sparked criticism in Europe.
“I deeply regret it. I hope this does not come into effect, because we need to increase pressure on Russia and strengthen support for Ukraine”, said Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard.
Estonia also took the view that such an agreement would weaken transatlantic unity. It advocated using the approximately €200 billion in frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, an issue that continues to divide Member States.
In a separate measure (https://aeur.eu/f/nvl ), the EU added 77 individuals to its sanctions list because of their participation in the September elections for the Russian Duma held in occupied Ukrainian territories. Those targeted include candidates from several Russian parties, a member of the Central Election Commission and a journalist. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)