EU member states have greenlit a 13th wave of sanctions against Russia pertaining to Ukraine, prohibiting almost 200 entities and individuals allegedly involved in aiding Moscow’s arms procurement or engaging in the abduction of Ukrainian children.
Belgium, holding the EU presidency, announced on the social media platform X that “EU Ambassadors just agreed in principle on a 13th package of sanctions in the framework of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine,” hailing it as “one of the broadest approved by the EU.”
The latest sanctions will entail the addition of 193 entities and individuals to the list of those barred from entering the EU or conducting business there.
However, there are no fresh measures targeting specific economic sectors, as per EU diplomatic sources.
These sources disclosed that the listings predominantly target entities and individuals affiliated with Russia’s military industrial complex, alongside those implicated in the trafficking and kidnapping of Ukrainian children.
Notably, a North Korean and a Belarusian firm have also been included.
In March of the prior year, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court accused Russia of relocating “at least hundreds” of children from orphanages and care homes in occupied Ukrainian regions, branding it a war crime.
The ICC indicted officials, including President Vladimir Putin, for the abduction of Ukrainian children, an allegation vehemently denied by Moscow, which claims it took these children to safeguard them. Ukraine asserts that Russia has displaced over 4,000 children.
Furthermore, the sanctions target the procurement network supporting Russia’s military, particularly the supply chain involved in drone manufacturing.
Twenty-seven companies have been appended to Annex IV, barring European firms from selling dual-use goods to them.
Most of the added companies are Russian, with three mainland Chinese firms and one Hong Kong-based company also on the list, according to the sources.
The formal approval of the package is slated to coincide with the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen asserted on X, “We must keep degrading Putin’s war machine,” underscoring that the sanctions aim to further impede Russia’s access to drones.
Additionally, ambassadors extended the current sanctions regime, listing approximately 2,000 individuals and companies, for six more months.