On Friday evening, on the first anniversary of the start of the Russian forces’ invasion of Ukraine, the European Union imposed a tenth package of sanctions on Moscow and on Iranian companies accused of providing them with drones, according to the Swedish presidency of the bloc.
The Swedish presidency said on its Twitter account: “One year has passed since the brutal and illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the European Union has approved a tenth package of sanctions that includes, in particular, stricter restrictions on the export of dual-use technologies and goods.”
Sweden explained that the sanctions included targeted restrictive measures against individuals and entities who support the war, spread propaganda, or hand over drones used by Russia in the war, and measures against Russian disinformation, according to Agence France-Presse.
This new package of sanctions was approved after Poland lifted its reservations at the end of the evening, as Warsaw sought to make the sanctions much more severe, but its efforts failed.
During his visit to Kiev to deliver the first batch of German Leopard-2 tanks, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki described this new package of sanctions as “very soft and very weak”.
And a number of diplomats confirmed to AFP that “Poland did not get anything.”
“You made a unilateral statement about what you want from the next sanctions package,” said one.
According to diplomatic sources, this tenth package of sanctions specifically imposes new restrictions on European exports to Russia worth 11 billion euros and freezes the assets of three Russian banks and many entities, including Iranian companies accused of supplying Moscow with drones.
The list includes 120 names, but it will remain confidential until it is published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Delegations of many countries criticized the Polish position, considering that it “punished Europe” because the sanctions package was not approved until evening, that is, several hours after the United States and Britain announced the tightening of their sanctions against Russia in a position they wanted to show their support for Ukraine a year after the start of the Russian invasion of its lands.
This is not the first time that Warsaw has delayed approving a package of sanctions against Russia in an effort to tighten them further. In December, the ninth European package of sanctions against Moscow was issued only after the leaders of European countries succeeded during a summit in Brussels in persuading Morawiecki to lift his reservations.
In addition, Washington announced Friday, in cooperation with its allies in the Group of Seven, a broad package of sanctions against Russia, a year after the start of the invasion of Ukraine.
The US Treasury Department said in a statement that it was “one of the most important sanctions steps” since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Washington targeted Russian companies and individuals in the sectors of minerals, mines, military equipment and semiconductors, in addition to thirty individuals and companies in European countries, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Malta and Bulgaria, accused of helping to circumvent sanctions by providing Moscow with military equipment.
Swiss-Italian businessman Walter Moretti has been particularly targeted for sanctions, as he is accused of supplying Western technologies and equipment to Russian intelligence services and the military.
Major Russian banks are subject to US and international sanctions, but the US Treasury Department targeted about 10 additional financial institutions, including Credit of Moscow, which is “one of the ten largest banks in terms of asset value.”
“Sanction-targeted actors are known to turn to smaller banks as well as wealth management firms to try to evade sanctions, while Russia seeks new avenues to access the international financial system,” the Treasury said.
For its part, London announced “new sanctions banning the export of all equipment found by Ukraine after Russia used it on the battlefield.”
The British sanctions include officials of the Russian atomic energy giant Rosatom, as well as the CEO of Nord Stream 2, and former security official to Vladimir Putin, Matthias Warnig.
Since February 2022, the US Treasury Department has taken more than 2,500 economic sanctions measures targeting Russia, in coordination with US allies and partners, and more than 30 countries have taken similar measures.
