The latest penalties target third nations for circumventing the existing restrictions
© Getty Images / Maria Devakhina
EU member states agreed on a new batch of sanctions targeting Russia on Wednesday. Sweden, which currently holds the EU’s rotating presidency, announced the deal on Twitter.
The 11th set of EU punitive measures is mainly aimed at stopping third countries and companies from bypassing the existing sanctions.
“Today, the EU Ambassadors agreed on the 11th package of sanctions against Russia. The package includes measures aimed at countering sanctions circumvention and individual listings,” the Swedish presidency said.
The latest package bans the transit of dual-use goods and technology through Russia to prevent the use of these products in the country’s defense and security sector. The new sanctions also allow the bloc to impose restrictions on the sale of sensitive dual-use goods and technology to nations that may resell them to Russia.
The EU has also expanded the list of restricted goods that could serve Russia’s military sector. The latest set of penalties extends the suspension of the broadcasting licenses in the EU of five Russian state-controlled media outlets.
Brussels has also banned access to EU ports for vessels engaged in ship-to-ship transportation if there is reason to suspect the cargo loaded was of Russian origin. The step is aimed at preventing the practices of ships loading Russian crude oil or petroleum products at sea to avoid the EU ban.
The bloc’s authorities have also added a further 71 persons and 33 entities to have their assets kept in the EU frozen due to their involvement in moving Ukrainian children from areas hit by the fighting to Russia, which is seen by Brussels as illegal.
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