LONDON: Britain announced on Wednesday what it described as a “significant ratchet up” of sanctions on Russia, including a complete asset freeze on the country’s biggest bank Sberbank and ending all new British outward investment in Russia. .
It comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that the attacks on civilians by Russian forces in the Ukrainian city of Buka “looked nothing less than a genocide”.
Dozens of people were found dead in the city following the withdrawal of Russian troops, resulting in worldwide condemnation, but Moscow has denied involvement and called the reports fake news.
“I’m scared when you see what’s happening in Buka, the revelation that we’re seeing what Putin has done Ukraine Doesn’t seem like much of a genocide to me,” Johnson told reporters.
“It’s no surprise the way people are reacting. I have no doubt that the international community, Britain in the very front ranks, is yet again to impose more sanctions and more punishments on Vladimir Putin’s regime.” Will proceed in lockstep,” he said.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) announced sweeping new measures shortly thereafter, said to have been developed in lockstep with global allies including the European Union (EU) and the US.
Britain’s Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “Today we are stepping up our campaign to end Putin’s horrific war with some of our most stringent sanctions.”
“Our latest wave of measures will end Britain’s imports of Russian energy and sanction more individuals and businesses destroying Putin’s war machine. Together with our allies, we are showing the Russian elite what atrocities they are.” Committed to Putin’s orders. We will not rest until Ukraine is victorious.”
It marks the UK’s fifth package of economic measures, aimed at cutting off key sectors of the Russian economy and ending the UK’s reliance on Russian energy, which the FCDO sees as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “war machine”. .
Sanctions include depositing assets against Sberbank and Credit Bank of Moscow. In 2020, UK investment in Russia exceeded 11 billion GBP, which will now be subject to a complete ban.
By the end of 2022, the UK said it would end all reliance on Russian coal and oil, and would end gas imports as soon as possible thereafter. Starting next week, exports of key oil refining equipment and catalysts will also be banned – a measure targeting not only the industry’s finances but its capabilities as a whole.
As part of the crackdown against key Russian strategic industries and state-owned enterprises, there will now also be a ban on imports of iron and steel products, a major source of revenue. Russia’s military ambitions are also being thwarted by new restrictions on Britain’s ability to acquire world-renowned quantum and advanced materials technologies, the FCDO said.
In addition, another eight oligarchs operating in the industries that Putin uses to “advance his war economy” are also on the latest sanctions list.
These include: Viacheslav (Moshe) Kantor, the largest shareholder of Akron, a fertilizer company with significant strategic importance to the Russian government; Andrey Gurev, a close associate of Putin and the founder of FosAgro – an important strategic company that produces fertilizers; Sergei Kogogin, director of KAMAZ – a manufacturer of trucks and buses for the Russian army and Sergei Sergeyevich Ivanov, chairman of Alrosa, the world’s largest diamond producer, also approved by the UK.
The others are Leonid Mikhelson, founder and CEO of leading Russian natural gas producer Novatek, which has a net worth of GBP 18 billion; Andrey Akimov, CEO of Gazprombank, Russia’s third largest bank; Alexander Dyukov, CEO of Gazpromneft, Russia’s third-largest and majority state-owned oil producer; and Boris Borisovich Rotenberg, the son of the co-owner of Russia’s largest gas pipeline producer SGM. The Rotenberg family is known for having close ties to Putin and many of them have already been approved.
The latest move comes ahead of Thursday’s meeting of G7 foreign ministers, where the UK will call for further collective action, including an accelerated timetable for all G7 countries to end their reliance on Russian energy.
The UK government said it would call for continued G7 unity to enforce further coordinated waves of sanctions against Russia’s economy and the Putin-around elite until Russia withdraws its troops takes and does not end his brutal campaign of aggression against Ukraine once and for all.
It comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that the attacks on civilians by Russian forces in the Ukrainian city of Buka “looked nothing less than a genocide”.
Dozens of people were found dead in the city following the withdrawal of Russian troops, resulting in worldwide condemnation, but Moscow has denied involvement and called the reports fake news.
“I’m scared when you see what’s happening in Buka, the revelation that we’re seeing what Putin has done Ukraine Doesn’t seem like much of a genocide to me,” Johnson told reporters.
“It’s no surprise the way people are reacting. I have no doubt that the international community, Britain in the very front ranks, is yet again to impose more sanctions and more punishments on Vladimir Putin’s regime.” Will proceed in lockstep,” he said.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) announced sweeping new measures shortly thereafter, said to have been developed in lockstep with global allies including the European Union (EU) and the US.
Britain’s Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “Today we are stepping up our campaign to end Putin’s horrific war with some of our most stringent sanctions.”
“Our latest wave of measures will end Britain’s imports of Russian energy and sanction more individuals and businesses destroying Putin’s war machine. Together with our allies, we are showing the Russian elite what atrocities they are.” Committed to Putin’s orders. We will not rest until Ukraine is victorious.”
It marks the UK’s fifth package of economic measures, aimed at cutting off key sectors of the Russian economy and ending the UK’s reliance on Russian energy, which the FCDO sees as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “war machine”. .
Sanctions include depositing assets against Sberbank and Credit Bank of Moscow. In 2020, UK investment in Russia exceeded 11 billion GBP, which will now be subject to a complete ban.
By the end of 2022, the UK said it would end all reliance on Russian coal and oil, and would end gas imports as soon as possible thereafter. Starting next week, exports of key oil refining equipment and catalysts will also be banned – a measure targeting not only the industry’s finances but its capabilities as a whole.
As part of the crackdown against key Russian strategic industries and state-owned enterprises, there will now also be a ban on imports of iron and steel products, a major source of revenue. Russia’s military ambitions are also being thwarted by new restrictions on Britain’s ability to acquire world-renowned quantum and advanced materials technologies, the FCDO said.
In addition, another eight oligarchs operating in the industries that Putin uses to “advance his war economy” are also on the latest sanctions list.
These include: Viacheslav (Moshe) Kantor, the largest shareholder of Akron, a fertilizer company with significant strategic importance to the Russian government; Andrey Gurev, a close associate of Putin and the founder of FosAgro – an important strategic company that produces fertilizers; Sergei Kogogin, director of KAMAZ – a manufacturer of trucks and buses for the Russian army and Sergei Sergeyevich Ivanov, chairman of Alrosa, the world’s largest diamond producer, also approved by the UK.
The others are Leonid Mikhelson, founder and CEO of leading Russian natural gas producer Novatek, which has a net worth of GBP 18 billion; Andrey Akimov, CEO of Gazprombank, Russia’s third largest bank; Alexander Dyukov, CEO of Gazpromneft, Russia’s third-largest and majority state-owned oil producer; and Boris Borisovich Rotenberg, the son of the co-owner of Russia’s largest gas pipeline producer SGM. The Rotenberg family is known for having close ties to Putin and many of them have already been approved.
The latest move comes ahead of Thursday’s meeting of G7 foreign ministers, where the UK will call for further collective action, including an accelerated timetable for all G7 countries to end their reliance on Russian energy.
The UK government said it would call for continued G7 unity to enforce further coordinated waves of sanctions against Russia’s economy and the Putin-around elite until Russia withdraws its troops takes and does not end his brutal campaign of aggression against Ukraine once and for all.