Countries around the world are imposing new sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
The European Union, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Taiwan hit Moscow with new injunctions on Friday (25), condemning the military incursion that unfolded in the last 24 hours.
Last Thursday, the United States and the United Kingdom also released more measures against Russia, as the leaders of both nations condemned the actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia is already, in some ways, paying the price for its aggression, with the country’s stocks and currency plummeting this week after Putin’s earlier decision to order troops into eastern Ukraine.
On Thursday, Russia’s main MOEX index closed down 33%, while the ruble fell to a record low, down 7% against the US dollar. It rebounded on Friday to trade at 84.7 against the US Dollar.
Ukraine is also asking the West to ban Russia from SWIFT, the high-security network that facilitates payments between 11,000 financial institutions in 200 countries. And earlier in the week, Germany stopped certifying the Nord Stream 2 pipeline following Moscow’s actions.
Putin warned Russian business leaders on Thursday that he expects more “restrictions” on the economy, but urged companies to work “in solidarity” with the government.
Below is a list of the latest major sanctions.
European Union
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron announced new measures on Friday, promising to inflict “maximum impact on the Russian economy and political elite”.
“Let’s hold the Kremlin accountable,” von der Leyen said.
The sanctions are aimed at Russia’s financial, energy and transport sectors and include export controls and trade finance bans.
Von der Leyen said they are now targeting 70% of Russian banking and major state-owned companies, and have sought to “make it impossible for Russia to upgrade its oil refineries”.
“We are also targeting Russian elites by restricting their deposits so they can no longer hide their money in safe havens in Europe,” he added.
The sanctions are also aimed at limiting Russia’s access to sensitive technology, as well as aircraft components and equipment.
Japan
Japan will impose a series of sanctions on Russian financial institutions, military organizations and individuals in response to the invasion of Ukraine, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced on Friday.
The range of measures includes freezing the assets of certain Russian individuals and financial institutions, as well as banning exports to Russian military organizations.
“In response to this situation, we will strengthen our sanction measures in close cooperation with the G7 and the rest of the international community,” Kishida told a news conference on Friday.
Australia
Australia’s leader said on Friday that he would “start imposing new sanctions on oligarchs, whose economic weight is of strategic importance to Moscow and more than 300 members of the Russian Duma, its parliament.”
Speaking at a news conference on Friday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison added that Canberra “was also working with the United States to align with its new overnight sanctions on key Belarusian individuals and entities complicit in the aggression, so we are extending these sanctions to Belarus.”
The new round of measures came after Australia imposed travel bans and targeted financial sanctions on eight members of the Security Council of the Russian Federation on Thursday.
New Zealand
New Zealand is banning the export of goods to Russian military and security forces in response to the invasion of Ukraine.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on Friday that she would cut trade with Russia and impose travel bans on Russian officials, while continuing to call for a return to diplomatic dialogue to resolve the crisis.
“Here and now we need to act immediately,” Ardern told a news conference in Wellington.
“This is the brazen use of military power and violence that will take innocent lives and we must oppose it.”
Taiwan
Taiwan announced on Friday that it would join economic sanctions against Russia, without specifying what measures were being considered.
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said on Friday that it “strongly condemns” Russia’s decision to start a war against Ukraine, adding that it poses a serious threat to the rules-based international order.
The decision to impose sanctions was taken “to compel Russia to stop its military aggression against Ukraine and to restart peaceful dialogue between all parties involved as soon as possible,” the ministry added.
Taiwan is a global leader in semiconductor production.
U.S
US President Joe Biden on Thursday released tough new measures against Russia, saying: “Putin has chosen war.”
The new sanctions include technology export blocks, a centerpiece of Biden’s approach that he said would severely limit Russia’s ability to advance its military and aerospace sector.
In a statement, the White House said that “this includes Russia-wide restrictions on semiconductors, telecommunications, cryptographic security, lasers, sensors, navigation, aviation and maritime technologies.”
Washington has also sanctioned Russian banks, which it described as “corrupt billionaires” and their families close to the Kremlin.
He said he would stop 13 large state-owned companies from raising money in the United States, including energy giant Gazprom and Sberbank, Russia’s biggest financial institution.
The White House also promised to sanction two dozen Belarusian individuals and companies, which include “two significant Belarusian state-owned banks, nine defense companies and seven officials and elites linked to the regime.”
United Kingdom
The UK is set to sanction 100 individuals and entities as part of new sanctions against Russia, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Thursday afternoon.
In a speech to parliament, Johnson said the aim was to “exclude Russian banks from the UK financial system”.
An asset freeze will be imposed on Russian state bank VTB, he added, following the sanction of five Russian banks on Tuesday. Russian state and private companies will also be barred from raising funds in the UK.
In addition, 100 individuals and entities will have their assets frozen, Johnson said, adding that this includes “all the major manufacturers that support Putin’s war machine.”
Johnson also said that “nothing is off the table” when it comes to closing Russia’s access to SWIFT.
The UK will ban Russia’s national carrier Aeroflot and impose sanctions on Belarus “for its role in the attack on Ukraine”, the prime minister added.
Going forward, Britain also expects to introduce legislation “early next week” to ban the export of certain technologies to Russia, particularly “in sectors such as electronics, telecommunications and aerospace,” according to Johnson.
And he outlined plans to establish a new dedicated cell in the country’s National Crime Agency “to target sanctions, evasion and corrupt Russian assets hidden in the UK.”
“We will continue on a relentless mission to squeeze Russia out of the global economy piece by piece. Day by day and week by week,” Johnson told lawmakers.
— Charles Riley, Kevin Liptak, Nathan Hodge, Julia Horowitz, and Chris Liakos contributed to this story.
Source: CNN Brasil
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