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International sanctions International sanctions are political and economic decisions that are part of diplomatic efforts by countries, multilateral or regional organizations against states or organizations either to protect national security interests, or to protect i ...
have been imposed against
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
and
Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a p ...
during the
Russo-Ukrainian War The Russo-Ukrainian War; uk, російсько-українська війна, rosiisko-ukrainska viina. has been ongoing between Russia (alongside Russian separatists in Ukraine) and Ukraine since February 2014. Following Ukraine's Rev ...
by a large number of countries, including the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
, the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, and international organisations following the Russian annexation of Crimea, which began in late February 2014.
Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
has also been sanctioned for its cooperation with and assistance to Russian armed forces. The sanctions were imposed against individuals, businesses, and officials from Russia and
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
. Russia responded with sanctions against several countries, including a total ban on food imports from
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
, Canada,
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...
,
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
, the United States, and the EU. The sanctions contributed to the collapse of the Russian ruble and worsened the economic impact of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. They also caused economic damage to the EU economy, with total losses estimated at €100 billion (). , Russia's finance minister announced that the sanctions had cost Russia $40 billion, with another $100 billion loss in 2014 taken due to the decrease in the
price of oil The price of oil, or the oil price, generally refers to the spot price of a barrel () of benchmark crude oil—a reference price for buyers and sellers of crude oil such as West Texas Intermediate (WTI), Brent Crude, Dubai Crude, OPEC ...
the same year. Following the latest sanctions imposed in August 2018, economic losses incurred by Russia amount to some 0.5–1.5% in foregone GDP growth. Russian president
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
has accused the United States of conspiring with
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
to intentionally weaken the Russian economy by decreasing the price of oil. By mid-2016, Russia had lost an estimated $170 billion due to financial sanctions, with another $400 billion in lost revenues from oil and gas. According to Ukrainian officials, the sanctions forced Russia to change its approach toward Ukraine and undermined the Russian military advances in the region. Representatives of these countries say that they will lift sanctions against Russia only after Moscow fulfills the Minsk II agreements. , the sanctions by the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
and
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
continue to be in effect. In January 2022, the EU announced the latest extension of sanctions until 31 July 2022. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the United States, the EU, and other countries introduced or significantly expanded sanctions to include Vladimir Putin and other government members. They also cut off selected Russian banks from
SWIFT Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to: * SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks ** SWIFT code * Swift (programming language) * Swift (bird), a family of birds It may also refer to: Organizations * SWIFT, ...
. The 2022 boycott of Russia and Belarus triggered the
2022 Russian financial crisis The economic impact of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine began in late February 2022, in the days after Russia recognized two breakaway Ukrainian republics and launched an invasion of Ukraine. The subsequent economic sanctions have tar ...
.


Background

In response to the
annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War. The events in Kyiv t ...
and the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...
, some governments and international organisations, led by the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
and
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, imposed sanctions on Russian individuals and businesses. As the unrest expanded into other parts of
Eastern Ukraine Eastern Ukraine or east Ukraine ( uk, Східна Україна, Skhidna Ukrayina; russian: Восточная Украина, Vostochnaya Ukraina) is primarily the territory of Ukraine east of the Dnipro (or Dnieper) river, particularly Khar ...
, and later escalated into the ongoing war in the Donbass region, the scope of the sanctions increased. Overall, three types of sanctions were imposed: ban on provision of technology for oil and gas exploration, ban on provision of credits to Russian oil companies and state banks, travel restrictions on the influential Russian citizens close to President Putin and involved in the annexation of Crimea. The
Russian government The Government of Russia exercises executive power in the Russian Federation. The members of the government are the prime minister, the deputy prime ministers, and the federal ministers. It has its legal basis in the Constitution of the Russ ...
responded in kind, with sanctions against some Canadian and American individuals and, in August 2014, with a total ban on food imports from the European Union, United States, Norway, Canada and Australia.


Sanctions against Russian and Ukrainian individuals, companies and officials


First round: March/April 2014

On 6 March 2014, U.S. president
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
, invoking, ''inter alia'', the ''
International Emergency Economic Powers Act The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Title II of , is a United States federal law authorizing the president to regulate international commerce after declaring a national emergency in response to any unusual and extraordinary ...
'' and the ''
National Emergencies Act The National Emergencies Act (NEA) (, codified at –1651) is a United States federal law passed to end all previous national emergencies and to formalize the emergency powers of the President. The Act empowers the President to activate speci ...
'', signed an
executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of t ...
declaring a national emergency and ordering sanctions, including travel bans and the freezing of U.S. assets, against not-yet-specified individuals who had "asserted governmental authority in the
Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a p ...
n region without the authorization of the Government of Ukraine" and whose actions were found, ''inter alia'', to "undermine democratic processes and institutions in Ukraine". On 17 March 2014, the United States, the European Union, and
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
introduced specifically targeted sanctions, the day after the Crimean pseudo-referendum and a few hours before Russian president
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
signed a decree recognizing Crimea as an independent state, laying the groundwork for its annexation of Crimea by Russia. The principal EU sanction aimed to "prevent the entry into ... their territories of the natural persons responsible for actions which undermine ... the territorial integrity ... of Ukraine, and of natural persons associated with them, as listed in the Annex". The EU imposed its sanctions "in the absence of de-escalatory steps by the Russian Federation" in order to bring an end to the violence in eastern Ukraine. The EU at the same time clarified that the union "remains ready to reverse its decisions and reengage with Russia when it starts contributing actively and without ambiguities to finding a solution to the Ukrainian crisis". These 17 March sanctions were the most wide-ranging sanctions used against Russia since the 1991 fall of the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
.
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
also announced sanctions against Russia, which included the suspension of talks regarding military matters, space, investment, and visa requirements. A few days later, the US government expanded the sanctions. On 19 March,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
imposed sanctions against Russia after its annexation of Crimea. These sanctions targeted financial dealings and travel bans on those who have been instrumental in the Russian threat to Ukraine's sovereignty. Australian sanctions were expanded on 21 May. In early April,
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...
,
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...
and
Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = ...
, as well as
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
, imposed the same restrictions and travel bans as those of the EU on 17 March.
Igor Lukšić Igor Lukšić (Serbian Cyrillic: Игор Лукшић, ; born 14 June 1976) is a Montenegrin politician who served as the 4th Prime Minister of Montenegro from 2010 to 2012, following the resignation of Milo Đukanović. He was succeeded by Đ ...
, foreign minister of Montenegro, said that despite a "centuries old-tradition" of good ties with Russia, joining the EU in imposing sanctions had "always been the only reasonable choice". Slightly earlier in March,
Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnistri ...
imposed the same sanctions against former president of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych and a number of former Ukrainian officials, as announced by the EU on 5 March. In response to the sanctions introduced by the United States and the European Union, the
State Duma The State Duma (russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, r=Gosudárstvennaja dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma ( rus, Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper hous ...
(Lower House of the Russian parliament) unanimously passed a resolution asking for all members of the Duma be included on the sanctions list. The sanctions were expanded to include prominent Russian businessmen and women a few days later.


Second round: April 2014

On 10 April, the Council of Europe suspended the voting rights of Russia's delegation. On 28 April, the United States imposed a ban on business transactions within its territory on seven Russian officials, including Igor Sechin, executive chairman of the Russian state oil company
Rosneft PJSC Rosneft Oil Company ( stylized as ROSNEFT) is a Russian integrated energy company headquartered in Moscow. Rosneft specializes in the exploration, extraction, production, refining, transport, and sale of petroleum, natural gas, and petro ...
, and 17 Russian companies. On the same day, the EU issued travel bans against a further 15 individuals. The EU also stated the aims of EU sanctions as:
sanctions are not punitive, but designed to bring about a change in policy or activity by the target country, entities or individuals. Measures are therefore always targeted at such policies or activities, the means to conduct them and those responsible for them. At the same time, the EU makes every effort to minimise adverse consequences for the civilian population or for legitimate activities.


Third round: 2014–2021


2014

In response to the escalating
War in Donbass War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
, on 17 July 2014 the United States extended its transactions ban to two major Russian energy firms,
Rosneft PJSC Rosneft Oil Company ( stylized as ROSNEFT) is a Russian integrated energy company headquartered in Moscow. Rosneft specializes in the exploration, extraction, production, refining, transport, and sale of petroleum, natural gas, and petro ...
and Novatek, and to two banks,
Gazprombank Gazprombank (russian: Газпромбанк), or GPB (JSC), is a private-owned Russian bank, the third largest bank in the country by assets. Since November 2014, Yuri Shamalov's Gazfond is its largest shareholder. The bank’s principal busine ...
and
Vnesheconombank VEB.RF, or VEB (russian: ВЭБ.РФ (ex-Vnesheconombank)), is a Russian state development corporation. It was founded in 2007 as a development institute. VEB.RF is an investment company and development institute in Russia. It has financed more t ...
. United States also urged EU leaders to join the third wave leading EU to start drafting European sanctions a day before. On 25 July, the EU officially expanded its sanctions to an additional 15 individuals and 18 entities, followed by an additional eight individuals and three entities on 30 July. On 31 July 2014 the EU introduced the third round of sanctions which included an embargo on arms and related material, and embargo on
dual-use In politics, diplomacy and export control, dual-use items refers to goods, software and technology that can be used for both civilian and military applications.
goods and technology intended for military use or a military end user, a ban on imports of arms and related material, controls on export of equipment for the
oil industry The petroleum industry, also known as the oil industry or the oil patch, includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transportation (often by oil tankers and pipelines), and marketing of petroleum products. The larges ...
, and a restriction on the issuance of and trade in certain bonds,
equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership *Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the diff ...
or similar financial instruments on a maturity greater than 90 days (In September 2014 lowered to 30 days) On 24 July 2014,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
targeted Russian arms, energy and financial entities. On 5 August 2014,
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
froze the assets of "individuals and groups supporting the separation of Crimea from Ukraine" and restrict imports from Crimea. Japan also froze funds for new projects in Russia in line with the policy of the multilateral
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is an international financial institution founded in 1991. As a multilateral developmental investment bank, the EBRD uses investment as a tool to build market economies. Initially fo ...
. On 8 August 2014, Australian prime minister
Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott was born in Londo ...
announced that Australia is "working towards" tougher sanctions against Russia, which should be implemented in the coming weeks. On 12 August 2014,
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...
adopted the tougher sanctions against Russia that were imposed by the European Union and the United States on 12 August 2014. The Norwegian foreign minister
Børge Brende Børge Brende (born 25 September 1965) is a Norwegian politician and diplomat, and has been the president of the World Economic Forum since 2017. A member of the Conservative Party, he previously was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 20 ...
said that it would impose restrictions similar to the EU's 1 August sanctions. Russian state-owned banks will be banned from taking long-term and mid-term loans, arms exports will be banned and supplies of equipment, technology and assistance to the Russian oil sector will be prohibited. On 14 August 2014,
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
expanded sanctions against Russia over its threat to Ukraine's sovereignty. Swiss government added 26 more Russians and pro-Russian Ukrainians to the list of sanctioned Russian citizens that was first announced after Russia's annexation of Crimea. On 27 August 2014 Switzerland further expanded their sanctions against Russia. The Swiss government said it is expanding measures to prevent the circumvention of sanctions relating to the situation in Ukraine to include the third round of sanctions imposed by the EU in July. The Swiss government also stated that five Russian banks (
Sberbank PJSC Sberbank (russian: Сбербанк, initially a contraction of russian: сберегательный банк, translit=sberegatelnyy bank, lit=savings bank, link=no) is a Russian majority state-owned banking and financial services compa ...
, VTB,
Vnesheconombank VEB.RF, or VEB (russian: ВЭБ.РФ (ex-Vnesheconombank)), is a Russian state development corporation. It was founded in 2007 as a development institute. VEB.RF is an investment company and development institute in Russia. It has financed more t ...
(VEB),
Gazprombank Gazprombank (russian: Газпромбанк), or GPB (JSC), is a private-owned Russian bank, the third largest bank in the country by assets. Since November 2014, Yuri Shamalov's Gazfond is its largest shareholder. The bank’s principal busine ...
and Rosselkhoz) will require authorisation to issue long-term financial instruments in Switzerland. On 28 August 2014, Switzerland amended its sanctions to include the sanctions imposed by the EU in July. On 14 August 2014, Ukraine passed a law introducing Ukrainian sanctions against Russia. The law includes 172 individuals and 65 entities in Russia and other countries for supporting and financing "terrorism" in Ukraine, though actual sanctions would need approval from Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council. On 11 September 2014, US president Obama said that the United States would join the EU in imposing tougher sanctions on Russia's financial, energy and defence sectors. On 12 September 2014, the United States imposed sanctions on Russia's largest bank (Sberbank), a major arms maker and arctic (
Rostec Rostec ( rus, Ростех, p=, r=Rostekh), officially the State Corporation for Assistance to Development, Production and Export of Advanced Technology Industrial Product Rostec (russian: Государственная корпорация по � ...
), deepwater and shale exploration by its biggest oil companies (
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the large ...
,
Gazprom Neft Gazprom Neft (russian: Газпром Нефть; formerly Sibneft, russian: Сибнефть, link=no), is the third largest oil producer in Russia and ranked third according to refining throughput. It is a subsidiary of Gazprom, which owns about ...
,
Lukoil The PJSC Lukoil Oil Company ( stylized as LUKOIL or ЛУКОЙЛ in Cyrillic script) is a Russian multinational energy corporation headquartered in Moscow, specializing in the business of extraction, production, transport, and sale of petrol ...
, Surgutneftegas and
Rosneft PJSC Rosneft Oil Company ( stylized as ROSNEFT) is a Russian integrated energy company headquartered in Moscow. Rosneft specializes in the exploration, extraction, production, refining, transport, and sale of petroleum, natural gas, and petro ...
). Sberbank and Rostec will have limited ability to access the US debt markets. The sanction on the oil companies seek to ban co-operation with Russian oil firms on energy technology and services by companies including Exxon Mobil Corp. and BP Plc. On 24 September 2014, Japan banned the issue of securities by 5 Russian banks (Sberbank, VTB, Gazprombank, Rosselkhozbank and development bank VEB) and also tightened restrictions on defence exports to Russia. On 3 October 2014, US vice president Joe Biden said that "It was America's leadership and the president of the United States insisting, ofttimes almost having to embarrass Europe to stand up and take economic hits to impose costs" and added that "And the results have been massive capital flight from Russia, a virtual freeze on foreign direct investment, a ruble at an all-time low against the dollar, and the Russian economy teetering on the brink of recession. We don't want Russia to collapse. We want Russia to succeed. But Putin has to make a choice. These asymmetrical advances on another country cannot be tolerated. The international system will collapse if they are." On 18 December 2014, the EU banned some investments in Crimea, halting support for Russian Black Sea oil and gas exploration and stopping European companies from purchasing real estate or companies in Crimea, or offering tourism services. On 19 December 2014, US president Obama imposed sanctions on Russian-occupied Crimea by executive order prohibiting exports of US goods and services to the region.


2015

On 16 February 2015, the EU increased its sanction list to cover 151 individuals and 37 entities. Australia indicated that it would follow the EU in a new round of sanctions. If the EU sanctioned new Russian and Ukrainian entities then Australia would keep their sanctions in line with the EU. On 18 February 2015, Canada added 37 Russian citizens and 17 Russian entities to its sanction list.
Rosneft PJSC Rosneft Oil Company ( stylized as ROSNEFT) is a Russian integrated energy company headquartered in Moscow. Rosneft specializes in the exploration, extraction, production, refining, transport, and sale of petroleum, natural gas, and petro ...
and the deputy minister of defence,
Anatoly Antonov Anatoly Ivanovich Antonov (born 15 May 1955) is a Russian military officer and diplomat who is currently the Ambassador of Russia to the United States, formally replacing Sergey Kislyak on 21 August 2017 by presidential decree. With a rep ...
, were both sanctioned. In June 2015 Canada added three individuals and 14 entities, including
Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the large ...
. Media suggested the sanctions were delayed because Gazprom was a main sponsor of the
2015 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup was the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international soccer championship contested by the women's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament was hosted by Canada for the ...
then concluding in Canada. In September 2015, Ukraine sanctioned more than 388 individuals, over 105 companies and other entities. In accordance with the August 2015 proposals promulgated by the Security Service of Ukraine and the Order of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 808-p dated 12 August 2015, Ukraine, on 2 September 2015, declared Russia an enemy of Ukraine. Also on 16 September 2015, the Ukrainian president
Petro Poroshenko Petro Oleksiyovych Poroshenko ( uk, Петро́ Олексі́йович Пороше́нко, ; born 26 September 1965) is a Ukrainian businessman and politician who served as the fifth president of Ukraine from 2014 to 2019. Poroshenko se ...
issued a decree that named nearly 400 individuals, more than 90 companies and other entities to be sanctioned for the Russia's "criminal activities and aggression against Ukraine."


Fourth round: 2022

After Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, two countries that had not previously taken part in sanctions, namely South Korea and non-UN member state
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
, engaged in sanctions against Russia. On 28 February 2022,
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
announced that it will impose banking sanctions against Russia for the invasion of Ukraine, thus making it the first country in Southeast Asia to impose sanctions upon Russia; the move was described by the ''
South China Morning Post The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remained ...
'' as being "almost unprecedented". The sanctions also included materials that could be used for weapons against Ukraine, as well as electronics, technology devices and other related equipment, which were listed in a detailed statement on 5 March. On 28 February 2022, the
Central Bank of Russia The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR; ), doing business as the Bank of Russia (russian: Банк России}), is the central bank of the Russian Federation. The bank was established on July 13, 1990. The predecessor of the bank can ...
was blocked from accessing more than $400 billion in
foreign-exchange reserves Foreign exchange reserves (also called forex reserves or FX reserves) are cash and other reserve assets such as gold held by a central bank or other monetary authority that are primarily available to balance payments of the country, influence ...
held abroad and the EU imposed sanctions on several Russian oligarchs and politicians.
Sergei Aleksashenko Sergey Vladimirovich Aleksashenko (russian: Сергей Владимирович Алексашенко; born 23 December 1959, Likino-Dulyovo) is a Russian economist and former government official. He was the deputy finance minister and first d ...
, the former Russian deputy finance minister, said: "This is a kind of financial nuclear bomb that is falling on Russia." On 1 March 2022, the French finance minister
Bruno Le Maire Bruno Le Maire (; born 15 April 1969) is a French politician and former diplomat who has served as Minister of the Economy and Finance since 2017 under President Emmanuel Macron. A former member of The Republicans (LR), which he left in 2017 to ...
said the total amount of Russian assets being frozen by sanctions amounted to $1 trillion.
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...
,
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
and
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
have announced that they would not be participating in any economic sanctions against Russia. Western countries and others began imposing limited sanctions on Russia when it recognised the independence of Donbas. With the commencement of attacks on 24 February, a large number of other countries began applying sanctions with the aim of crippling the Russian economy. The sanctions were wide-ranging, targeting individuals, banks, businesses, monetary exchanges, bank transfers, exports, and imports.
Faisal Islam Faisal Islam ( bn, ফয়সাল ইসলাম; born 29 May 1977) is a British political and economics journalist who is the economics editor of BBC News and the occasional presenter of ''Newsnight''. He was the political editor of Sky Ne ...
of BBC News stated that the measures were far from normal sanctions and were "better seen as a form of economic war". The intent of the sanctions was to push Russia into a deep
recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...
with the likelihood of
bank run A bank run or run on the bank occurs when many clients withdraw their money from a bank, because they believe the bank may cease to function in the near future. In other words, it is when, in a fractional-reserve banking system (where banks no ...
s and
hyperinflation In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...
. Islam noted that targeting a G20 central bank in this way had never been done before. Deputy Chairman of the
Security Council of Russia The Security Council of the Russian Federation (SCRF or Sovbez; russian: Совет безопасности Российской Федерации (СБРФ), Sovet bezopasnosti Rossiyskoy Federatsii (SBRF)) is a constitutional consultative bo ...
and former president
Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev ( rus, links=no, Дмитрий Анатольевич Медведев, p=ˈdmʲitrʲɪj ɐnɐˈtolʲjɪvʲɪtɕ mʲɪdˈvʲedʲɪf; born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician who has been serving as the dep ...
derided Western sanctions imposed on Russia, including personal sanctions, and commented that they were a sign of "political impotence" resulting from NATO's withdrawal from Afghanistan. He threatened to nationalise foreign assets that companies held inside Russia. On 14 March 2022, Biden's national security advisor Jake Sullivan warned
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
that it would face consequences if it helped Russia evade sanctions.


Oil

Senator Roger Marshall introduced a bill on 1 March 2022 banning US imports of Russian oil, supported by the GOP minority leader of the
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources The United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is a standing committee of the United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over matters related to energy and mineral resources, including nuclear development; irrigation and recl ...
and seven other Republicans. The first move by a Western nation to impose a flat blockade on Russian petroleum, its top moneymaker, came a day prior from Canada. President
Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since ...
said that it "sends a powerful message." On 8 March, President Joe Biden ordered a ban on imports of oil, gas and coal from Russia to the US. File:US imports of Russian Oil a Month.webp, alt=, US imports of Russian oil by month File:US oil production, imports, & exports.webp, alt=, US oil production, imports, and exports File:US Natural Gas.webp, alt=, US natural gas production, imports and exports The EU will ban all imports of refined oil products from Russia in February 2023, the UK will ban Russian oil imports from December 2022. EU imports of oil by ship have fallen by 1.2m bpd to under 0.1m bpd. On September 2, 2022, the G7 group of nations agreed to cap the price of Russian oil in order to reduce Russia's ability to finance its war with Ukraine without further increasing inflation. Joined by the European Union and Australia, the sanctions come into effect on 5 December 2022.


Banking

In a 22 February speech, US president Joe Biden announced restrictions against four Russian banks, including V.E.B., as well as on corrupt billionaires close to Putin. UK prime minister
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as ...
announced that all major Russian banks would have their assets frozen and be excluded from the UK financial system, and that some export licences to Russia would be suspended. He also introduced a deposit limit for Russian citizens in UK bank accounts, and froze the assets of over 100 additional individuals and entities. The foreign ministers of the
Baltic states The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone ...
called for Russia to be cut off from
SWIFT Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to: * SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks ** SWIFT code * Swift (programming language) * Swift (bird), a family of birds It may also refer to: Organizations * SWIFT, ...
, the global messaging network for international payments. Other
EU member states The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
had initially been reluctant to do this, both because European lenders held most of the nearly $30 billion in foreign banks' exposure to Russia and because China had developed an alternative to SWIFT called CIPS; a weaponisation of SWIFT would provide greater impetus to the development of CIPS which, in turn, could weaken SWIFT as well as the West's control over international finance. Other leaders calling for Russia to be stopped from accessing SWIFT include Czech president
Miloš Zeman Miloš Zeman (; born 28 September 1944) is a Czech politician serving as the third and current President of the Czech Republic since 2013. He previously served as the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic from 1998 to 2002. As leader of the Cze ...
, and UK prime minister Boris Johnson. Germany had resisted calls for Russia to be banned from SWIFT, citing the effect it would have on payments for Russian gas and oil; on 26 February, the German foreign minister
Annalena Baerbock Annalena Charlotte Alma Baerbock (; born 15 December 1980) is a German politician of the Alliance 90/The Greens party serving as Germany's minister for foreign affairs since 2021. From 2018 to January 2022, Baerbock served as co-leader of Allia ...
and economy minister
Robert Habeck Robert Habeck (; born 2 September 1969) is a German politician and writer who has been serving as Vice Chancellor of Germany, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action in ...
made a joint statement backing targeted restrictions of Russia from SWIFT. Shortly thereafter, it was announced that major Russian banks would be removed from SWIFT, although there would still be limited accessibility to ensure the continued ability to pay for gas shipments. Furthermore, it was announced that the West would place sanctions on the Russian Central Bank, which holds $630bn in foreign reserves, to prevent it from liquidating assets to offset the impact of sanctions. On 26 February, two Chinese state banks—the
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited (ICBC; ) is a Chinese multinational bank. Founded as a limited company on 1 January 1984, ICBC is a state-owned commercial bank. With capital provided by the Ministry of Finance of China, the b ...
, which is the largest bank in the world, and the
Bank of China The Bank of China (BOC; ) is a Chinese majority state-owned commercial bank headquartered in Beijing and the fourth largest bank in the world. The Bank of China was founded in 1912 by the Republican government as China's central bank, rep ...
, which is the country's biggest currency trader—were limiting financing to purchase Russian raw materials, which was limiting Russian access to foreign currency. On 28 February, Switzerland froze a number of Russian assets and joined EU sanctions. According to Ignazio Cassis, the
president of the Swiss Confederation The president of the Swiss Confederation, also known as the president of the Confederation or colloquially as the president of Switzerland, is the head of Switzerland's seven-member Federal Council, the country's executive branch. Elected by ...
, the decision was unprecedented but consistent with Swiss neutrality. The same day,
Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
adopted economic sanctions and procedures for freezing funds identical to those taken by most European states.
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
became the first Southeast Asian country to impose sanctions on Russia by restricting banks and transactions linked to Russia; the move was described by the ''
South China Morning Post The ''South China Morning Post'' (''SCMP''), with its Sunday edition, the ''Sunday Morning Post'', is a Hong Kong-based English-language newspaper owned by Alibaba Group. Founded in 1903 by Tse Tsan-tai and Alfred Cunningham, it has remained ...
'' as being "almost unprecedented". South Korea announced it would participate in the SWIFT ban against Russia, as well as announcing an export ban on strategic materials covered by the "Big 4" treaties to which Korea belongs—the Nuclear Suppliers Group, the
Wassenaar Arrangement The Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies is a multilateral export control regime (MECR) with 42 participating states including many former Comecon (Warsaw Pact) countries established ...
, the Australia Group, and the
Missile Technology Control Regime The Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) is a multilateral export control regime. It is an informal political understanding among 35 member states that seek to limit the proliferation of missiles and missile technology. The regime was formed ...
; in addition, 57 non-strategic materials, including semiconductors, IT equipment, sensors, lasers, maritime equipment, and aerospace equipment, were planned to be included in the export ban "soon". On 28 February,
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
announced that its central bank would join sanctions by limiting transactions with Russia's central bank, and would impose sanctions on
Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
ian organisations and individuals, including President
Aleksandr Lukashenko Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (as transliterated from Russian; also transliterated from Belarusian as Alyaksand(a)r Ryhoravich Lukashenka;, ; rus, Александр Григорьевич Лукашенко, Aleksandr Grigoryevich Luk ...
, because of Belarus' "evident involvement in the invasion" of Ukraine. According to ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'', payments for energy raw materials have been largely spared from these measures. The Central Bank of Russia was blocked from accessing more than $400 billion in
foreign-exchange reserves Foreign exchange reserves (also called forex reserves or FX reserves) are cash and other reserve assets such as gold held by a central bank or other monetary authority that are primarily available to balance payments of the country, influence ...
held abroad.
Sergei Aleksashenko Sergey Vladimirovich Aleksashenko (russian: Сергей Владимирович Алексашенко; born 23 December 1959, Likino-Dulyovo) is a Russian economist and former government official. He was the deputy finance minister and first d ...
, the former Russian deputy finance minister, said: "This is a kind of financial nuclear bomb that is falling on Russia." EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said that Western governments "cannot block the reserves of the Russian central bank in Moscow or in China". On 1 March, the
Grand and General Council The Grand and General Council ( it, Consiglio Grande e Generale) is the parliament of San Marino. The council has 60 members elected for a five-year term. History From the fifth century San Marino was ruled by an assembly composed by all t ...
of
San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...
authorised the country's government to take sanctions against Russia, and rejected that the measures had a military content. The same day, the French finance minister
Bruno Le Maire Bruno Le Maire (; born 15 April 1969) is a French politician and former diplomat who has served as Minister of the Economy and Finance since 2017 under President Emmanuel Macron. A former member of The Republicans (LR), which he left in 2017 to ...
said that Russian assets being frozen by sanctions amounted to $1 trillion.
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
announced it would stop all transactions with 7 main Russian banks and their affiliates, restrict the purchase of Russian treasury bonds, and agreed to "immediately implement" and join any further economics sanctions imposed against Russia by the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
. Following sanctions and criticisms of their relations with Russian business, many companies chose to exit Russian or Belarusian markets voluntarily or in order to avoid potential future sanctions. Visa, Mastercard, and American Express independently blocked Russian banks as of 2 March. Following Swiss sanctions on Russia,
Credit Suisse Credit Suisse Group AG is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded and based in Switzerland. Headquartered in Zürich, it maintains offices in all major financial centers around the world and is one of the nine global " ...
issued orders to destroy documents linking Russian oligarchs to yacht loans, a move which led to considerable criticism.


Export

The US instituted
export control Export control is legislation that regulates the export of goods, software and technology. Some items could potentially be useful for purposes that are contrary to the interest of the exporting country. These items are considered to be ''controlled ...
s, a novel sanction focused on restricting Russian access to high-tech components, both hardware and software, made with any parts or intellectual property from the US. The sanction required that any person or company that wanted to sell technology, semiconductors, encryption software, lasers, or sensors to Russia request a licence, which by default was denied. The enforcement mechanism involved sanctions against the person or company, with the sanctions focused on the shipbuilding, aerospace, and defence industries.


EU sanctions

On the morning of 24 February,
Ursula von der Leyen Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding suc ...
, the
president of the European Commission The president of the European Commission is the head of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU). The President of the Commission leads a Cabinet of Commissioners, referred to as the College, collectively account ...
, announced "massive" EU sanctions to be adopted by the union. The sanctions targeted technological transfers, Russian banks, and Russian assets. Josep Borrell, the
High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Union (EU). The position is currently held ...
, stated that Russia would face "unprecedented isolation" as the EU would impose the "harshest package of sanctions
hich the union has Ij ( fa, ايج, also Romanized as Īj; also known as Hich and Īch) is a village in Golabar Rural District, in the Central District of Ijrud County Ijrud County ( fa, شهرستان ایجرود) is located in Zanjan province, Iran. The c ...
ever implemented". He also said that "these are among the darkest hours of Europe since the Second World War". President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola called for "immediate, quick, solid and swift action" and convened an extraordinary session of Parliament for 1 March. In May 2022, the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
proposed and approved a partial ban on oil imports from Russia, part of the economic response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. European sanctions are imposed according to Decision 2014/145/CFSP of the European Council and EU Regulation 269/2014, which authorize the freezing of assets. Josep Borrell said he wants EU countries to confiscate frozen
foreign-exchange reserves Foreign exchange reserves (also called forex reserves or FX reserves) are cash and other reserve assets such as gold held by a central bank or other monetary authority that are primarily available to balance payments of the country, influence ...
of the Russian central bank —which amount to over $300 billion— to cover the costs of rebuilding Ukraine after the war. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
Alexander Grushko Alexander Viktorovich Grushko (russian: Александр Викторович Грушко; born 25 April 1955) is a Russian diplomat, and is currently Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, since 22 January 2018. Previously, he was the Permanent ...
remarked that Borrell's initiative amounted to "complete lawlessness" and said it would hurt Europe if adopted.


= European impoundment of ships

= A 5 April 2022 article by Insider claims the total cost of yachts impounded throughout Europe be over $2 billion. This amount includes the motoryacht ''Tango'', seized pursuant to United States sanctions with Spanish assistance.


France

On 26 February, the
French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
intercepted Russian cargo ship ''Baltic Leader'' in the
English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" ( Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), ( Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Ka ...
. The ship was suspected of belonging to a company targeted by the sanctions. The ship was escorted to the port of
Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Department ...
and was being investigated. On 2 March 2022, French customs officials seized the yacht ''Amore Vero'' at a shipyard in
La Ciotat La Ciotat (; oc, label= Provençal Occitan, La Ciutat ; in Mistralian spelling ''La Ciéutat''; 'the City') is a commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southern France. It is the southeasternmost ...
. The ''Amore Vero'' is believed to be owned by the sanctioned oligarch Igor Sechin. Two yachts belonging to
Alexei Kuzmichev Alexey Viktorovich Kuzmichev or Kousmichoff (Russian: ''Алексей Викторович Кузьмичёв'') is a Russian businessman. He is one of the founders of the LetterOne Group (LetterOne) and the Alfa Group. Kuzmichev is a stakeho ...
of Alfa Bank were seized by France on March 24.


Germany

On 2 March 2022, German authorities immobilized '' Dilbar'', owned by
Alisher Usmanov Alisher Burkhanovich Usmanov (russian: Алишер Бурханович Усманов; born 9 September 1953) is an Uzbek-born Russian businessman and oligarch. By 2022, Usmanov had an estimated net worth of $19.5 billion and was among the w ...
. She is reported to have cost $800 million, employ 84 full-time crew members, and contain the largest indoor swimming pool installed on a superyacht at 180 cubic metres.


Italy

On 4 March, Italian police impounded '' Lady M''. Authorities believe the ship is owned by Alexei Mordashov. The same day, Italian police seized the yacht of
Gennady Timchenko Gennady Nikolayevich Timchenko (russian: Геннадий Николаевич Тимченко, ''also spelled'' Guennadi Timtchenko; born 9 November 1952) is a Russian oligarch and billionaire businessman. He founded and owns the private inve ...
, ''Lena'', in the port city of
Sanremo Sanremo (; lij, Sanrémmo(ro) or , ) or San Remo is a city and comune on the Mediterranean coast of Liguria, in northwestern Italy. Founded in Roman times, it has a population of 55,000, and is known as a tourist destination on the Italian Rivie ...
. The yacht was also placed on a United States sanctions list. On 12 March 2022, Italian authorities in the port of
Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...
seized the sailing yacht '' A'', known to be owned by Andrey Melnichenko. A spokesperson for Melnichenko vowed to contest the seizure.


Spain

In March 2022, the Spanish Ministry of Development (known by its acronym "MITMA") detained three yachts pending investigation into whether their true owners are individuals sanctioned by the European Union. ''Valerie'' is detained in the Port of Barcelona; ''
Lady Anastasia The MY ''Lady Anastasia'' (formerly ''Aria'') is a luxury motor yacht. The luxury yacht was built in 2001 by Sensation Yachts. In 2022, the yacht became embroiled with the fallout from the Russo-Ukrainian War, with a crew member attempting to ...
'' in Port Adriano in
Calvià Calvià () is a municipality on the island of Majorca, part of the Spanish autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. It is located in the southwestern part of the island of Majorca, between the Serra de Tramuntana and the Serra de Na Burguesa ...
,
Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bale ...
; and ''Crescent'' in the Port of
Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tarr ...
.


United Kingdom

On 29 March 2022,
Grant Shapps Grant Shapps (born 14 September 1968) is a British politician who is serving as Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy since October 2022. He previously served as Secretary of State for Transport in the Johnson governm ...
, the British secretary of state for transport, announced the
National Crime Agency The National Crime Agency (NCA) is a national law enforcement agency in the United Kingdom. It is the UK's lead agency against organised crime; human, weapon and drug trafficking; cybercrime; and economic crime that goes across regional and in ...
's seizure of ''Phi''. The yacht was docked at
Canary Wharf Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London's central business district, alongside Central Lon ...
and was about to leave.


Netherlands

On 6 April 2022, Dutch
Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...
Wopke Hoekstra Wopke Bastiaan Hoekstra (born 30 September 1975) is a Dutch politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands, second Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands and List of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, Minist ...
sent a letter on the subject of sanctions addressed to the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
. In it, he reported that while no Russian superyachts were at anchor in the Netherlands, twelve yachts under construction across five shipyards were immobilized to ascertain ownership, including possible beneficial ownership.


Greece

On 19 April 2022, Greece announced the seizure of the Russian-flagged petroleum
tanker ship A tanker (or tank ship or tankship) is a ship designed to transport or store liquids or gases in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and gas carrier. Tankers also carry commodities such as vegetable oils, ...
''Pegas,'' which docked at
Karystos Karystos ( el, Κάρυστος) or Carystus is a small coastal town on the Greek island of Euboea. It has about 5,000 inhabitants (12,000 in the municipality). It lies 129 km south of Chalkis. From Athens it is accessible by ferry via ...
after encountering rough seas. The seizure applies solely to the ship and not its cargo.


Sanctions against Crimea

The United States, Canada, the European Union, and other European countries (including Ukraine) imposed economic sanctions specifically targeting Crimea. Sanctions prohibit the sale, supply, transfer, or export of goods and technology in several sectors, including services directly related to tourism and infrastructure. They list seven ports where cruise ships cannot dock. Sanctions against Crimean individuals include travel bans and asset freezes. Visa and MasterCard have stopped service in Crimea between December 2014 and April 2015. In September 2016 Pursuant to Executive Order 13685, OFAC designated Russian shipping company Sovfracht-Sovmortrans Group and its subsidiary, Sovfracht for operating in Crimea.


Sanctions over Ukrainians held by Russia

In April 2016, Lithuania sanctioned 46 individuals who were involved in the detention and sentencing of Ukrainian citizens Nadiya Savchenko, Oleh Sentsov, and Olexandr Kolchenko. Lithuanian foreign minister Linas Linkevičius said that his country wanted to "focus attention on the unacceptable and cynical violations of international law and human rights in Russia. ..It would be more effective if the blacklist became Europe-wide. We hope to start such a discussion."


Opposition to sanctions

Italy, Hungary, Greece, France, Cyprus and Slovakia are among the EU states most skeptical about the sanctions and have called for review of sanctions. The Hungarian prime minister
Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between ...
stated that Europe "shot itself in the foot" by introducing economic sanctions. Bulgarian prime minister
Boyko Borisov Boyko Metodiev Borisov ( bg, Бойко Методиев Борисов, ; born 13 June 1959) is a Bulgarian politician who served as the prime minister of Bulgaria from 2009 to 2013, 2014 to 2017, and 2017 to 2021, making him Bulgaria's second ...
stated, "I don't know how Russia is affected by the sanctions, but Bulgaria is affected severely"; Czech president
Miloš Zeman Miloš Zeman (; born 28 September 1944) is a Czech politician serving as the third and current President of the Czech Republic since 2013. He previously served as the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic from 1998 to 2002. As leader of the Cze ...
and Slovak prime minister Robert Fico also said that the sanctions should be lifted. In October 2017, the Hungarian minister of foreign affairs and trade
Péter Szijjártó Péter Szijjártó (; born 30 October 1978) is a Hungarian politician who has been Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade since 2014. He previously served as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Parliamentary State Secretary of the ...
added that the sanctions "were totally unsuccessful because Russia is not on its knees economically, but also because there have been many harms to our own economies and, politically speaking, we have had no real forward progress regarding the Minsk agreement". In 2015, the Greek prime minister
Alexis Tsipras Alexis Tsipras ( el, Αλέξης Τσίπρας, ; born 28 July 1974) is a Greek politician serving as Leader of the Official Opposition since 2019. He served as Prime Minister of Greece from 2015 to 2019. Tsipras has led the Coalition of th ...
repeatedly said that Greece would seek to mend ties between
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
and EU through European institutions. Tsipras also said that Greece was not in favour of Western sanctions imposed on Russia, adding that it risked the start of another
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...
. A number of business figures in France and Germany have opposed the sanctions. The German economy minister Sigmar Gabriel said that the Ukrainian crisis should be resolved by dialogue rather than economic confrontation, later adding that the reinforcement of anti-Russian sanctions will "provoke an even more dangerous situation... in Europe".
Paolo Gentiloni Paolo Gentiloni Silveri (; born 22 November 1954) is an Italian politician who has served as European Commissioner for Economy in the von der Leyen Commission since 1 December 2019. He previously served as prime minister of Italy from Decembe ...
, the Italian minister of foreign affairs, said that the sanctions "are not the solution to the conflict". In January 2017, Swiss economics minister and former president of Switzerland Johann Schneider-Ammann stated his concern about the sanctions' harm to the Swiss economy, and expressed hope that they will soon come to an end. Some companies, most notably Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies LLC and
Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), commonly shortened to Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. When combined with its subsidiaries, it is the second- largest airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried. Lufthansa is one of the five founding ...
Service Holding were reported to attempt bypassing the sanctions and exporting power generation turbines to the annexed Crimea. In August 2015, the British think tank Bow Group released a report on sanctions, calling for the removal of them. According to the report, the sanctions have had "adverse consequences for European and American businesses, and if they are prolonged... they can have even more deleterious effects in the future"; the potential cost of sanctions for the Western countries has been estimated as over $700 billion. In June 2017,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
and
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
criticized the U.S. Senate over new sanctions against Russia that target the planned
Nord Stream 2 Nord Stream 2 (German-English mixed expression; german: Nord and en, Stream 2, literally 'North Stream2'; russian: Северный поток — 2) is a natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany running through the Baltic Sea, financed by ...
gas pipeline Pipeline transport is the long-distance transportation of a liquid or gas through a system of pipes—a pipeline—typically to a market area for consumption. The latest data from 2014 gives a total of slightly less than of pipeline in 120 countr ...
from Russia to Germany,The U.S. Sanctions Russia, Europe Says 'Ouch!'
".
Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and m ...
. 16 June 2017.
stating that the United States was threatening Europe's energy supplies (see also Russia in the European energy sector).US bill on Russia sanctions prompts German, Austrian outcry
". Deutsche Welle. 15 June 2017.
In a joint statement Austria's chancellor Christian Kern and Germany's foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel said that "Europe's energy supply is a matter for Europe, and not for the United States of America." They also said: "To threaten companies from Germany, Austria and other European states with penalties on the U.S. market if they participate in natural gas projects such as Nord Stream 2 with Russia or finance them introduces a completely new and very negative quality into European-American relations." In May 2018, the vice chairman of
Free Democratic Party of Germany The Free Democratic Party (german: link=no, Freie Demokratische Partei; FDP, ) is a liberal political party in Germany. The FDP was founded in 1948 by members of former liberal political parties which existed in Germany before World War II, ...
and the
vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...
of the
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Comm ...
Wolfgang Kubicki said that Germany should "take a first step towards Russia with the easing of the economic sanctions" because "this can be decided by Germany alone" and "does not need the consent of others". In February 2019, advisor to Municipal Councilor of Municipality of Verona, member of House of Representative
Vito Comencini
said that the anti-Russian sanctions have caused significant damage to the Italian economy, with the result that the country suffers losses every day in the amount of millions of euros. Nations and individuals that oppose sanctions against Russia state that sanctions do not generally result in a change in the policies of the sanctioned nation and that sanctions mostly hurt the civilian population who have little control over the issues pertaining to foreign policy. In March 2022, China expressed opposition to sanctions against Russia as punishment for invading Ukraine. No country in
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
,
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...
or the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
has imposed sanctions on Russia. In March 2022, former Swiss councilor Christoph Blocher announced the
ballot initiative In political science, an initiative (also known as a popular initiative or citizens' initiative) is a means by which a petition signed by a certain number of registered voters can force a government to choose either to enact a law or hold a p ...
'Pro Souveräne Schweiz' (PSS), which would amend "integral neutrality" to the Swiss constitution. If approved, economic sanctions for example against Russia in 2022, would constitute a violation of Swiss neutrality. The initiative launched in September 2022 was supported by the right-leaning
Swiss People's Party The Swiss People's Party (german: Schweizerische Volkspartei, SVP; rm, Partida populara Svizra, PPS), also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre (french: Union démocratique du centre, UDC; it, Unione Democratica di Centro, UDC), is a nati ...
(SVP), when the Parliament of Switzerland voted against a revision of its law to impose independent sanctions.


Efforts to lift sanctions

France announced in January 2016 that it wanted to lift the sanctions in mid-2016. Earlier, U.S. Secretary of State
John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...
mentioned a possible lifting of sanctions. In June 2016, the French Senate voted to urge its government to "gradually and partially" lift the EU sanctions on Russia, although the vote was non-binding. However, in September 2016, the EU extended its sanctions, for another six months, against Russian officials and pro-Moscow separatists in Ukraine.Norman, Laurence (11 September 2016)
EU Extends Sanctions on Russian Officials Over Ukraine Crisis.
''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved: 5 October 2016.
An EU asset freeze on ex-Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych was upheld by the bloc's courts. On 13 March 2017, the EU extended the asset freeze and travel bans on 150 people until September 2017.
''The Washington Post''. Retrieved: 13 March 2016.
The sanctions include Yanukovych and senior members of his administration. As Trump's
National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils. National sec ...
, Michael T. Flynn was an important link in the connections between Putin and Trump in the "Ukraine peace plan", an unofficial plan "organized outside regular diplomatic channels....at the behest of top aides to President Putin". This plan, aimed at easing the sanctions imposed on Russia, progressed from Putin and his advisors to Ukrainian politician Andrey Artemenko,
Felix Sater Felix Henry Sater (born Felix Mikhailovich Sheferovsky; russian: Фе́ликс Миха́йлович Шеферовский; March 2, 1966) is a Russian-American mobster, convicted felon, real estate developer and former managing director of ...
, Michael Cohen, and Flynn, where he would have then presented it to Trump. ''The New York Times'' reported that Sater delivered the plan "in a sealed envelope" to Cohen, who then passed it on to Flynn in February 2017, just before his resignation. On 19 June 2017, the EU again extended sanctions for another year that prohibit EU businesses from investing in Crimea, and which target tourism and imports of products from Crimea. In November 2017, the
Secretary General of the Council of Europe The Secretary General of the Council of Europe (french: Secrétaire général du Conseil de l'Europe, links=no) is appointed by the Parliamentary Assembly on the recommendation of the Committee of Ministers for a period of five years. The secreta ...
Thorbjørn Jagland Thorbjørn Jagland (born Thorbjørn Johansen; , 5 November 1950) is a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party. He served as the secretary general of the Council of Europe from 2009 to 2019. He served as the 32nd prime minister of Norway from ...
said that the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it has 46 member states, with a p ...
considered lifting the sanctions on Russia due to concerns that Russia may leave the organization, which would be "a big step back for Europe". Jagland was also criticized of "caving in to blackmail" by other Council members for his conciliatory approach to Russia. On 9 October 2018, the council's parliamentary assembly voted to postpone the decision on whether Russia's voting rights should be restored. On 8 March 2019, the Italian prime minister
Giuseppe Conte Giuseppe Conte (; born 8 August 1964) is an Italian jurist, academic, and politician who served as prime minister of Italy from June 2018 to February 2021. He has been the president of the Five Star Movement (M5S) since August 2021. Cont ...
stated that Italy is working on lifting the sanctions, which "the ruling parties in Rome say are ineffective and hurt the Italian economy".


Other sanctions on Russia


United States

In December 2012, the US enacted the ''
Magnitsky Act The Magnitsky Act, formally known as the Russia and Moldova Jackson–Vanik Repeal and Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012, is a bipartisan bill passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in ...
'', intended to punish Russian officials responsible for the death of Russian tax accountant
Sergei Magnitsky Sergei Leonidovich Magnitsky (russian: Сергeй Леонидович Магнитский, ; 8 April 1972 – 16 November 2009) was a Ukrainian-born Russian tax advisor responsible for exposing corruption and misconduct by Russian gover ...
in a Moscow prison in 2009 by prohibiting their entry to the US and use of its banking system. 18 individuals were originally affected by the Act. In December 2016, Congress enacted the ''Global Magnitsky Act'' to allow the US Government to sanction foreign government officials implicated in human rights abuses anywhere in the world. On 21 December 2017, 13 additional names were added to the list of sanctioned individuals, not just Russians. Other countries passed similar laws to ban foreigners deemed guilty of human rights abuses from entering their countries. On 29 December 2016, the US president
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
signed an Executive Order that expelled 35 Russian diplomats, locked down two Russian diplomatic compounds, and expanded sanctions against Russia for its interference in the 2016 United States elections. In August 2017, the US Congress enacted the ''
Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act The Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) is a United States federal law that imposed sanctions on Iran, North Korea, and Russia. The bill was passed by the Senate on July 27, 2017, 98–2, after it passed the House 419 ...
'' that imposed new sanctions on Russia for interference in the 2016 elections and its involvement in Ukraine and Syria. The act converted the punitive measures previously imposed by executive orders into law to prevent the president easing, suspending or ending of sanctions without the approval of Congress. On 15 March 2018, Trump imposed financial sanctions under the act on the 13 Russian government hackers and front organizations that had been indicted by Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. On 6 April 2018, the United States imposed economic sanctions on seven Russian oligarchs and 12 companies they control, accusing them of "malign activity around the globe", along with 17 top Russian officials, the state-owned weapons-trading company
Rosoboronexport JSC Rosoboronexport (russian: AO Рособоронэкспорт, ''Rosoboroneksport'') is the sole state intermediary agency for Russia's exports/imports of defense-related and dual use products, technologies and services. The Rosoboronexport ...
and
Russian Financial Corporation Bank Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
(RFC Bank). High-profile names on the list include
Oleg Deripaska Oleg Vladimirovich Deripaska (russian: Олег Владимирович Дерипаска; born 2 January 1968) is a Russian billionaire and an industrialist. Deripaska enriched himself on previously state-owned assets that were privatized in ...
and Kiril Shamalov, Putin's ex-son-in-law, who married Putin's daughter Katerina Tikhonova in February 2013. The press release stated: "Deripaska has been investigated for money laundering, and has been accused of threatening the lives of business rivals, illegally wiretapping a government official, and taking part in extortion and racketeering. There are also allegations that Deripaska bribed a government official, ordered the murder of a businessman, and had links to a Russian organized crime group." Other names on the list include: Oil tycoon Vladimir Bogdanov, Suleyman Kerimov, who faces money-laundering charges in France for allegedly bringing hundreds of millions of euros into the country without reporting the money to tax authorities,
Igor Rotenberg Igor Rotenberg (russian: link=no, Ротенберг, Игорь Аркадьевич born 9 September 1974) is a Russian billionaire businessman, and the oldest son and heir to Arkady Rotenberg, Russian billionaire businessman and co-owner with ...
, principal owner of Russian oil and gas drilling company Gazprom Burenie, Andrei Skoch, a deputy in the
State Duma The State Duma (russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, r=Gosudárstvennaja dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma ( rus, Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper hous ...
. U.S. officials said he has longstanding ties to Russian organized criminal groups, Viktor Vekselberg, founder and chairman of the
Renova Group Renova may refer to: Cities, towns, townships etc. * Renova, Mississippi *Renova: an unincorporated settlement in Dexter Township, Minnesota Brand names * Renova (brand), a Portuguese paper products company * Trade name of tretinoin Treti ...
,
asset management Asset management is a systematic approach to the governance and realization of value from the things that a group or entity is responsible for, over their whole life cycles. It may apply both to tangible assets (physical objects such as buildings ...
company, and
Aleksandr Torshin Aleksandr Porfiryevich Torshin (russian: Алекса́ндр Порфи́рьевич То́ршин; November 27, 1953, Ust-Bolsheretsky District) is a Russian politician. He served in the Federation Council of Russia, from 2001 to 2015. H ...
. In August 2018, following the poisoning of Sergey Skripal, the U.S. Department of Commerce imposed further sanctions on
dual-use In politics, diplomacy and export control, dual-use items refers to goods, software and technology that can be used for both civilian and military applications.
exports to Russia which were deemed to be sensitive on
national security National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military att ...
grounds, including
gas turbine A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directio ...
engines,
integrated circuit An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit (also referred to as an IC, a chip, or a microchip) is a set of electronic circuits on one small flat piece (or "chip") of semiconductor material, usually silicon. Large numbers of tiny ...
s, and
calibration In measurement technology and metrology, calibration is the comparison of measurement values delivered by a device under test with those of a calibration standard of known accuracy. Such a standard could be another measurement device of kno ...
equipment used in
avionics Avionics (a blend of ''aviation'' and ''electronics'') are the electronic systems used on aircraft. Avionic systems include communications, navigation, the display and management of multiple systems, and the hundreds of systems that are fit ...
. Until that moment, such exports were considered on a case-by-case basis. Following the introduction of these sanctions, the default position is of denial. Also, on September that year a list of companies in the
space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consi ...
and
defense industry The arms industry, also known as the arms trade, is a global industry which manufactures and sells weapons and military technology. It consists of a commercial industry involved in the research and development, engineering, production, and s ...
came under sanctions, including: AeroComposit, Divetechnoservices, Scientific-Research Institute "Vektor", Nilco Group, Obinsk Research and Production Enterprise, Aviadvigatel, Information Technology and Communication Systems (Infoteks), Scientific and Production Corporation of Precision Instruments Engineering and Voronezh Scientific Research Institute "Vega", whom are forbidden from doing business with. In March 2019, the United States imposed sanctions on persons and companies involved in the Russian shipbuilding industry in response to the
Kerch Strait incident The Kerch Strait incident was an international incident that occurred on 25 November 2018 in the Kerch Strait, during which the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) coast guard fired upon and captured three Ukrainian Navy vessels after they ...
: Yaroslavsky Shipbuilding Plant, Zelenodolsk Shipyard Plant, AO Kontsern Okeanpribor, PAO Zvezda (Zvezda), AO Zavod Fiolent (Fiolent), GUP RK KTB Sudokompozit (Sudokompozit), LLC SK Consol-Stroi LTD and LLC Novye Proekty. Also, the U.S. targeted persons involved in the 2018 Donbass general elections. On 2 August 2019, the
U.S State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...
announced additional sanctions together with an
executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of t ...
signed by President Trump which gives the Department of Treasury and the
Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth and opportunity. Among its tasks are gathering economic and demographic data for busi ...
the authority to implement the sanctions. The sanctions forbid granting Russia
loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...
s or other assistance from
international financial institutions An international financial institution (IFI) is a financial institution that has been established (or chartered) by more than one country, and hence is subject to international law. Its owners or shareholders are generally national governments, a ...
, prohibition on U.S banks buy non-ruble denominated bonds issued by the Russia after 26 August and lending non-ruble denominated funds to Russia and licensing restrictions for exports of items for
chemical A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., w ...
and
biological Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary in ...
weapons proliferation reasons. In September 2019, pursuant to Executive Order 13685 Maritime Assistance LLC was placed under sanctions due to its export of fuel to Syria as well as for providing support to Sovfracht, another company sanctioned for operating in Crimea. Later in the same month, the United States sanctioned two Russian citizens as well as three companies, Autolex Transport, Beratex Group and Linburg Industries in connection with the Russian interference in the 2016 United States election. In February 2022, President Joe Biden signed Executive Order 14065 of February 21, 2022 — "Blocking Property of Certain Persons and Prohibiting Certain Transactions With Respect to Continued Russian Efforts To Undermine the Sovereignty and Territorial Integrity of Ukraine"


International organizations

In January 2018, the EU sanctioned entities who participated in the construction of the Crimea Bridge: Institute Giprostroymost, the firm which designed the bridge; Mostotrest, which has a contract to maintain the bridge; Zaliv Shipyard, which built a railroad line to the bridge; Stroygazmontazh Corporation, the main construction company that built the bridge; a subsidiary of Stroygazmontazh called Stroygazmontazh-Most and VAD, which built the roadway over the bridge, as well as access roads. In March 2018, 29 Western countries and NATO expelled in total at least 149 Russian diplomats, including 60 by the United States, in response to the poisoning of Skripal and his daughter on 4 March in the United Kingdom, which has been blamed on Russia. Other measures were also taken.


Transiting ships to/from the Black Sea

Turkish Foreign Minister
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu (; born 5 February 1968) is a Turkish diplomat and politician who has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey since 24 November 2015. He previously served in the same position from August 2014 to August 2015. He is ...
announced on 27 February that his government would legally recognise the Russian invasion as a "war", which provides grounds for implementing the
Montreux Convention Regarding the Regime of the Straits The (Montreux) Convention regarding the Regime of the Straits, often known simply as the Montreux Convention, is an international agreement governing the Bosporus and Dardanelles Straits in Turkey. Signed on 20 July 1936 at the Montreux Palace ...
blocking the transit of Russian Federation and Ukrainian military vessels into/from the Black Sea.


Independent company actions

Following sanctions and negative sentiment towards engaging in Russian business, many companies have chosen to exit Russians or Belarusian markets voluntarily or in order to avoid potential future sanctions. Visa, Mastercard and American Express independently blocked Russian banks as of March 2. Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and colleagues at the
Yale School of Management The Yale School of Management (also known as Yale SOM) is the graduate business school of Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. The school awards the Master of Business Administration (MBA), MBA for Executive ...
have produced, and are keeping updated, a detailed list tracking those companies which have exited the Russian market, which have reduced their operations there, or which have chosen to remain. Following Swiss sanctions on Russia,
Credit Suisse Credit Suisse Group AG is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded and based in Switzerland. Headquartered in Zürich, it maintains offices in all major financial centers around the world and is one of the nine global " ...
issued orders to destroy documents linking Russian oligarchs to yacht loans, a move for which they faced considerable criticism.


Consequences and assessment


Political significance

The economic sanctions imposed on Russia, serve as a tool of nonrecognition policy, by underscoring that the countries which impose these sanctions do not recognize Russian annexation of Crimea. Having these sanctions in place prevents the situation from being treated as a fait accompli. As a reaction to the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...
, Western nations introduced unprecedented sanctions on Russian individuals, energy commodities and high-tech industries with the aim to change Russia's "political behavior". According to a study by the
Swedish Defence Research Agency The Swedish Defence Research Agency ( sv, Totalförsvarets forskningsinstitut, FOI; literal translation: ''Total Defence Research Institute'') is a government agency in Sweden for defence research. FOI has its headquarters in Kista (Stockholm). ...
, economic sanctions have so far failed forcing Russia to change its policy towards Ukraine.
Faisal Islam Faisal Islam ( bn, ফয়সাল ইসলাম; born 29 May 1977) is a British political and economics journalist who is the economics editor of BBC News and the occasional presenter of ''Newsnight''. He was the political editor of Sky Ne ...
of BBC News stated that the measures were far from normal sanctions and were "better seen as a form of economic war". The intent of the sanctions was to push Russia into a deep
recession In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...
with the likelihood of
bank run A bank run or run on the bank occurs when many clients withdraw their money from a bank, because they believe the bank may cease to function in the near future. In other words, it is when, in a fractional-reserve banking system (where banks no ...
s and
hyperinflation In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...
. Islam noted that targeting a G20 central bank in this way had never been done before.


Effect on Russia

The economic sanctions are generally believed to have helped weaken the
Russian economy The economy of Russia has gradually transformed from a planned economy into a mixed market-oriented economy. —Rosefielde, Steven, and Natalia Vennikova. “Fiscal Federalism in Russia: A Critique of the OECD Proposals.” Cambridge Journa ...
slightly and to intensify the challenges that Russia was facing. A 2015 data analysis suggested Russia's entry into a recession, with negative GDP growth of −2.2% for the first quarter of 2015, as compared to the first quarter of 2014. Further, the combined effect of the sanctions and the rapid decline in oil prices in 2014 has caused significant downward pressure on the value of the ruble and flight of capital out of Russia. At the same time, the sanctions on access to financing have forced Russia to use part of its foreign exchange reserves to prop up the economy. These events forced the Central Bank of Russia to stop supporting the value of the ruble and increase interest rates. Some believe that Russia's ban on western imports had the additional effect on these challenging events as the embargo led to higher food prices and further inflation in addition to the effects of decreased value of the ruble which had already raised the price of imported goods. In 2016
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
has surpassed the
arms industry The arms industry, also known as the arms trade, is a global industry classification, industry which manufacturing, manufactures and sells weapons and military technology. It consists of a commerce, commercial Private industry, industry involved ...
as Russia's second largest export sector after
oil and gas A fossil fuel is a hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the remains of dead plants and animals that is extracted and burned as a fuel. The main fossil fuels are coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossil fuels ...
.


Federal budget & domestic economy

In April 2022, Russia supplied 45% of EU's gas imports, earning $900 million a day. In the first two months after the invasion of Ukraine, Russia earned $66.5 billion from fossil fuel exports, and the EU accounted for 71% of that trade. As of May 2022, the
Russian Ruble ''hum''; cv, тенкĕ ''tenke''; kv, шайт ''shayt''; Lak: къуруш ''k'urush''; Mari: теҥге ''tenge''; os, сом ''som''; tt-Cyrl, сум ''sum''; udm, манет ''manet''; sah, солкуобай ''solkuobay'' , name_ab ...
showed an upward trend; inflation was also below expectations. Also in May 2022, the
Russian Central Bank The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR; ), doing business as the Bank of Russia (russian: Банк России}), is the central bank of the Russian Federation. The bank was established on July 13, 1990. The predecessor of the bank can ...
last slashed its key rate by 300 basis points to 11% in order to stimulate local investments. The federal trade surplus was increased due to high prices for Russian commodity exports and a rapid fall in imports. On 27 May 2022, Russian Finance Minister
Anton Siluanov Anton Germanovich Siluanov ( rus, Анто́н Ге́рманович Силуа́нов, p=ɐnˈton ˈɡʲɛrmənəvʲɪtɕ sʲɪlʊˈanəf; born 12 April 1963) is a Russian politician and economist serving as Minister of Finance since 2011. ...
stated that extra revenues from the sale of natural gas in the amount of 13.7 billion € will be used to increase pension funds for retired individuals and families with children, as well for "special operations" in Ukraine. Russia has also increased energy exports to
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
and
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
to make up for decreased revenues in Europe. Bloomberg reported that in the first half of 2022, Russia pocketed an extra 24 billion $ from selling energy to both nations. According to the IMF in its April 11, 2022 country report on Russia, the Russian economy is projected to see a -8.5% decrease in its real GDP in 2022, with an inflation of 21.3% in that same year. Despite projected contractions in some economic sectors, Russia has so far managed to avoid defaulting on its foreign currency debt. Russian inflation came in at a two-decade high of 17.8% year-on-year in April, up from 16.7% in March, but inflation on basic commodities such as food and fuel were modest. Consumer price growth slowed sharply from 7.6% in March to 1.6% in April, in line with some of the Western countries. Citizens of the Russian Federation face surging
inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduct ...
and
unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refe ...
, expensive credit,
capital control Capital controls are residency-based measures such as transaction taxes, other limits, or outright prohibitions that a nation's government can use to regulate flows from capital markets into and out of the country's capital account. These measure ...
s, restricted travel, and shortages of goods. Analysts have identified similarities with conditions in the decade following the
collapse of the Soviet Union The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...
in 1991. Russia's
Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...
exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...
faces ever-increasing isolation. A source close to the Kremlin told the Russian-language independent news website ''
Meduza ''Meduza'' ( rus, Медуза, t=jellyfish) is a Russian- and English-language independent news website, headquartered in Riga. It was founded in 2014 by a group of former employees of the then-independent '' Lenta.ru'' news website. Free m ...
'' that "There's probably almost nobody who's happy with Putin. Businesspeople and many cabinet members are unhappy that the president started this war without thinking through the scale of the sanctions. Normal life under these sanctions is impossible." On 27 June 2022,
Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and m ...
reported that Russia is poised to default on its foreign debt (
eurobonds Eurobond may refer to: * Eurobond (external bond), a bond issued that is denominated in a currency not native to the country where it is issued * Eurobond (eurozone) Eurobonds or stability bonds were proposed government bonds to be issued in ...
), for the first time since 1918 after the
Bolshevik revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mom ...
. According to the source, the country missed a debt payment due to sanctions on Russian banks. Finance Minister Siluanov dismissed the possible default status as a "farce", since the RF has plenty of funds to repay the debt.
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. new ...
reported that the official default on Russian's foreign debt would take time to be confirmed. Financial analysts described Russia's situation as unique, since it has extensive amounts of cash to fulfill its debt obligations. In late July 2022, the IMF upgraded Russia's GDP estimate by 2.5%, but some economists see a long-term problem for the Russian economy, and explain its resilience only by a short-term increase of energy prices. A Yale study projects a catastrophic outlook for Russian businesses if Western countries are able to keep up the sanctions against Russia's petrochemical industry. So far, Russia was able to leverage its economic power by cutting gas supplies to Europe, and play up its agricultural might as the largest wheat exporter globally. Western economists see long-lasting costs to the Russian economy from the exit of large foreign firms and brain drain, while Russia claims, it has replaced those entities with domestic investments. Long term, Russia's economy will depend on the price development of fossil fuel energy, and Russia's continued economic alliances with countries that do not impose sanctions, including China, the Middle East, India, as well as nations in Africa and South America. Russia's gross domestic product contracted 4% in the second quarter of 2022, revised from 6.5%, with a 15.3% drop in wholesale trade, and a 9.8% contraction in retail trade. Despite the ongoing sanctions, 47 of the world's biggest 200 companies still have not left Russia, particularly energy companies remain invested there. U.K. energy giant Shell plc, Shell and Japanese trading firms Mitsui and Mitsubishi hold double-digit stakes in the Sakhalin-2 oil and natural gas project. On July 1, 2022, Putin signed a decree to allow the government to seize the Sakhalin-2 oil and natural gas project but further attempts to formally nationalize the assets of international firms were paused when the bill did not make it through the
State Duma The State Duma (russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, r=Gosudárstvennaja dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma ( rus, Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper hous ...
before the 2022 summer recess. According to Western analysts, remaining companies have experienced expropriation and nationalization pressures, but officially Russia has denied that it is interested in such actions. In August 2022, Russia's trade and industry minister Denis Manturov stated, "we are not interested in the nationalization of enterprises or their removal.” Russia pumps almost as much oil as before its 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Sales to the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
and Asia have made up for declining exports of gas and oil to Europe, and due to the higher price, Moscow made $20 billion monthly compared to $14.6 billion a year before (2021). Despite international sanctions, Russian energy sales have increased in value, and its exports have expanded with new financing options and payment methods for international buyers. According to the Institute of International Finance, "Russia is swimming in cash", earning $97 billion from oil and gas sales through July 2022. According to a former Russian energy executive, "there came a realization that the world needs oil, and nobody's brave enough to embargo 7.5 million barrels a day of Russian oil and oil products".


Russian local replacement companies and products

In 2022, several local companies and businesses emerged or were proposed in Russia to replace departed foreign businesses, their products, websites banned by the Russian government, and events where Russia is prohibited from entry. * Uncle Vanya (Дядя Ваня) was established to replace McDonald's. The McDonald's restaurants, which closed down as the company left Russia, were bought and reopened under the brand Vkusno & tochka. * Rossgram (Россграм) was established to replace Instagram, and has close ties with the Russian government. This website also has crowdfunding and allowing users access to paid content. * Rusovideniye (Русовидение) was established as a replacement for Eurovision, which also planned to include celebrities from India, China, Serbia, Kazakhstan, and the Donetsk and Lugansk separatist regions. *CoolCola, Fancy, Street by Ochakovo (company), Ochakovo replace Coca-Cola, Fanta and Sprite (drink), Sprite soft drinks. Another drinks are Grink Cola by Slavda and Komi Cola by Syktyvkarpivo.


Effect on US and EU countries

As of 2015, the losses of EU have been estimated as at least €100 billion. The German business sector, with around 30,000 workplaces depending on trade with the Russian Federation, also reported being affected significantly by the sanctions. The sanctions affected numerous European market sectors, including energy, agriculture, and aviation among others. In March 2016, the Finnish farmers' union MTK stated that the Russian sanctions and falling prices have put farmers under tremendous pressure. Finland's Natural Resources Institute LUKE has estimated that in 2015, farmers saw their incomes shrink by at least 40 percent compared to the previous year. In February 2015, Exxon Mobil reported losing about $1 billion due to Russian sanctions. In 2017, the UN Special Rapporteur Idriss Jazairy published a report on the impact of sanctions, stating that the EU countries were losing about "3.2 billion dollars a month" due to them. He also noted that the sanctions were "intended to serve as a deterrent to Russia but run the risk of being only a deterrent to the international business community, while adversely affecting only those vulnerable groups which have nothing to do with the crisis" (especially people in Crimea, who "should not be made to pay collectively for what is a complex political crisis over which they have no control"). In the wake of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the US government considered new negotiations with Venezuela for crude oil, after new sanctions prohibiting and effectively ending all oil imports coming from Russia indefinitely. In May 2022, the EU decided to partially ban Russian oil imports, except those obtained through pipelines via Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic until the end of 2022. Crude oil prices again jumped as supplies for fossil fuels remained constrained; the decision by the European Council exacerbated worries about an already-tight energy market. Besides Hungary, which gained significant exemptions from the oil embargo, Italy was also initially an opponent of such sanctions. The Italian republic has been the only country in the EU that increased Russian oil imports since sanctions were announced. The EU oil embargo is now putting at risk one of Italy's largest refineries, located in Sicily's Province of Syracuse, that also produces other petroleum products and electricity from Russian crude.


Effect on global food supply

Western countries have accused Russia to interfere with wheat exports from Ukraine due to armed confrontations in Odessa and other Ukrainian ports. Later the Kremlin pushed back and accused the West of imposing sanctions on the Russian economy that hinder the export of wheat from the Russian Federation. Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov referred to Russia as "a rather reliable grain exporter". During a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, Putin confirmed Russia's willingness to make "a significant contribution to overcoming the food crisis through the export of grain and fertilizer" but mentioned Western sanctions as the caveat. The head of the African Union, Senegalese President Macky Sall, remarked that the side effects of the EU's decision to expel many Russian banks from
SWIFT Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to: * SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks ** SWIFT code * Swift (programming language) * Swift (bird), a family of birds It may also refer to: Organizations * SWIFT, ...
will hurt the ability of African countries to pay for imported food and fertilizers from Russia. French President Emmanuel Macron responded that difficulties have nothing to do with EU sanctions. On 30 June, Russia withdrew its troops from Snake Island (Ukraine), Snake Island in an avowed goodwill gesture to not obstruct U.N. attempts to open a humanitarian corridor, allowing grains to be shipped from Ukraine. Later on 16 July, major news outlets reported that Kyiv is definitely a step closer to being able to export grain through its Black Sea ports after talks with Russia, facilitated by Turkey, and the United Nations. On 22 July 2022, the facilitated exports of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea amid the ongoing war has been described as “a beacon of hope” by the UN Secretary-General António Guterres during the signing ceremony in Istanbul, Turkey. On 14 September 2022, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated his concerns over a constrained fertilizer supply from Russia due to the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...
and subsequent economic sanctions. According to the source, UN diplomats held discussions to re-open the Togliatti-Odessa pipeline carrying ammonia. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had offered such a move in exchange for the release of prisoners of war held by Russia. But TASS news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who dismissed such a idea, as saying “are people and ammonia the same thing?”. At the 38th meeting of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul, Erdogan remarked that over 11 million tonnes of grain had been transported through the Black Sea Grain Corridor since the succesful implementation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative. He also noted that the opening of the grain corridor through the Black Sea showed that a diplomatic solution is possible in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, conflict between Russia and Ukraine.


Shifting of safe havens

Under the sanctions imposed by the US and the European Union, Russian oligarchs began looking for safe havens financially. Many of them moved their wealth to countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which could not match the Western sanctions. Investigations spotted a number of superyachts moored in Dubai and the Maldives. Private jets owned by these oligarchs were also tracked flying back and forth from Moscow to Dubai and Israel. The Russian elites have been shifting funds worth hundreds of millions of dollars from sanctioning countries like the UK and Switzerland to countries that do not impose sanctions like the UAE. Russian oligarchs facing sanctions from the West were not just seeking to buy properties in the UAE, but for long-term residence. Analysts assessed that these billionaires could avail the service of the Emirates’ "golden visa" program by investing at least $2.7 million in a local company or investment fund. The golden visa program could allow these oligarchs to live, work, and study in the UAE with full ownership of their business.


Space

Continued international collaboration on the operation of and missions to the International Space Station (ISS) has been thrown into doubt.


Environmental effects

Reactions to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine#Science, Scientists suggest the sanctions could be used to accelerate the renewable energy transition/decarbonization (i.e. for Russian fossil fuels sanctions and due to e.g. increased public acceptance of increased energy prices, Climate change mitigation#Enaction of a state of emergency, unconventional energy transition efforts and uncomfortable energy conservation measures). Europe's dependence on Russian fossil fuels lead to a push for Renewable energy#Geopolitics of renewable energy, energy independence via renewables. However, depending on various factors or decisions, the war could also have a detrimental effect on climate change mitigation. Secretary-general of the United Nations António Guterres stated that "instead of hitting the brakes on the decarbonization of the global economy, now is the time to put the pedal to the metal towards a renewable energy future." With political policy-makers deciding to replace Russian fossil fuel imports with other fossil fuels imports and European coal energy production and to subsidize fossil fuel companies for reduced prices, as well as due to Russia being "a key supplier" of materials used for "clean energy technologies", the reactions to the war may also have an overall negative impact on the climate emissions pathway. Furthermore, prices of essential metals, used i.a. Car#Environmental effects, in cars, has risen substantially via market mechanisms in anticipation of sanctions which may also have impacts on the environment. Economic sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian war have accelerated the use of coal in energy production worldwide. Coal use in Europe already increased by 14% in 2021, and is expected to rise another 7% in 2022. Soaring natural gas prices have made coal more competitive in many markets, and some nations have resorted to coal as a substitute for potential energy rationing in winter 2022/23. With demand for coal increasing in Asia and elsewhere, global coal consumption is forecast to rise again by 0.7% in 2022 to 8 billion tonnes. Burning coal or petroleum products emits significantly higher amounts of carbon dioxide and air pollutants compared to natural gas. The return to coal slows the transition to greener and more sustainable energy sources. Both the United States and Russia are top exporters of natural gas and coal.


Enforcement efforts

The legal framework of sanctions varies across jurisdictions, including the means of enforcement and compliance.


Multilateral cooperation

On February 26, 2022, the leaders of the European Commission, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States released "Joint Statement on Further Restrictive Economic Measures," committing to the launch of "a transatlantic task force that will ensure the effective implementation of our financial sanctions by identifying and freezing the assets of sanctioned individuals and companies that exist within our jurisdictions." On March 16, 2022, financial intelligence units of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States signed a joint letter of intent forming a working group to "enhance, expedite and engage" in coordinated efforts related to sanctions and asset recovery. The same day, Janet Yellen and Merrick Garland announced the formation of the Russian Elites, Proxies, and Oligarchs (REPO) Task Force with the participation of relevant ministries from Australia, Canada, the European Commission, Germany, Italy, France, Japan, the UK. The Task Force members agree to collect and sharing information to take concrete action including sanctions, asset freezing, and civil and criminal asset seizure, and criminal prosecution.


FinCEN advisories for international banking and finance

Though it is a United States regulatory entity, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network is a de facto international regulator due to the dominance of the American dollar and resultant use of U.S.-based correspondent accounts. In March 2022, FinCEN released two "Alerts" intended to instruct institutions on sanctions compliance. Each included several possible "flags" for a suspicious activity report under the Bank Secrecy Act for sanctions avoidance. FIN-2022-Alert001 "FinCEN Advises Increased Vigilance for Potential Russian Sanctions Evasion Attempts" * Sanctions Evasion Attempts Using the U.S. Financial System * Sanctions Evasion Using Convertible Virtual Currency (CVC) * Possible Ransomware Attacks and Other Cybercrime FIN-2022-Alert002 "FinCEN Alert on Real Estate, Luxury Goods, and Other High Value Assets Involving Russian Elites, Oligarchs, and their Family Members" * Real Estate * Artworks * Precious Metals, Stones, and Jewelry (PMSJs) * Other High-Value Assets


Enforcement activities of the United States

The primary United States sanctions law,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Title II of , is a United States federal law authorizing the president to regulate international commerce after declaring a national emergency in response to any unusual and extraordinary ...
(IEEPA), permits the President (via the Treasury) to block (or "freeze") a designated foreign person or entity's assets. The law also prohibits any United States person from transacting business with the designated foreign person or entity. Specifically, criminalizes activities that "violate, attempt to violate, conspire to violate, or cause a violation of any license, order, regulation, or prohibition," and allows for fines up to $1,000,000, imprisonment up to 20 years, or both. Additionally, United States asset forfeiture laws allow for the seizure of assets considered to be the proceeds of criminal activity. On 3 February 2022, John "Jack" Hanick was arrested in London for violating sanctions against Konstantin Malofeev, owner of Tsargrad TV. Malofeev is targeted for sanctions by the European Union and United States for material and financial support to Donbass separatists. Hanick was the first person criminally indicted for violating United States sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War, War in Ukraine. According to court records, Hanick has been under sealed indictment in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York since November 2021. The indictment was unsealed March 3, 2022. Hanick awaits extradition from the United Kingdom to the United States. In the March 1, 2022 2022 State of the Union Address, State of the Union Address, American President Joe Biden announced an effort to target the wealth of Russian oligarchs. On March 2, 2022, U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced the formation of Task Force KleptoCapture, an inter-agency effort. On March 11, 2022, United States President Joe Biden signed , "Prohibiting Certain Imports, Exports, and New Investment With Respect to Continued Russian Federation Aggression," an order of economic sanctions under the United States
International Emergency Economic Powers Act The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Title II of , is a United States federal law authorizing the president to regulate international commerce after declaring a national emergency in response to any unusual and extraordinary ...
against several oligarchs. The order targeted two properties of Viktor Vekselberg worth an estimated $180 million: an Airbus A319-115 jet and the motoryacht ''Tango''. Estimates of the value of the ''Tango'' range from $90 million (U.S. Department of Justice estimate) to $120 million (from the website Superyachtfan.com). On April 4, 2022, the yacht was seized by Civil Guard (Spain), Civil Guard of Spain and U.S. federal agents in
Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bale ...
. A United States Department of Justice press release states that the seizure of the ''Tango'' was by request of Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency task force operated through the U.S. Deputy Attorney General. The matter is pending in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The affidavit for the seizure warrant states that the yacht is seized on probable cause to suspect violations of (conspiracy to commit bank fraud), (
International Emergency Economic Powers Act The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Title II of , is a United States federal law authorizing the president to regulate international commerce after declaring a national emergency in response to any unusual and extraordinary ...
), and (money laundering), and as authorized by American statutes on civil and criminal asset forfeiture. On 6 April 2022, the United States Department of Justice unsealed a 2021 criminal indictment of Konstantin Malofeev on the charges of making false statements (), violating United States sanctions under IEEPA () as well as the derivative regulations of , , and , and . The Department of Justice states that Malofeyev is the first sanctioned oligarch that the United States have charged. Many of the legal proceedings against "Russian oligarchs" in the US and Europe have been described as a "witch hunt" or "surgically precise interventions" against Russians, who may or may not align themselves with
Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
. Russian oligarchs or their family members have at least 18 pending cases in European and American courts upon seizure of their properties after the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...
. According to Bloomberg News, "the West is chasing Russian money", and at the same time, Russian businessmen are attempting to break the stereotype of illicit dealings by Russians in the Western world.


Russian counter-sanctions


2014

Three days after the first sanctions against Russia, on 20 March 2014, the Foreign Ministry of Russia, Russian Foreign Ministry published a list of reciprocal sanctions against certain American citizens, which consisted of ten names, including Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner, Senator John McCain, and two advisers to
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
. The ministry said in the statement, "Treating our country in such way, as Washington could have already ascertained, is inappropriate and counterproductive", and reiterated that sanctions against Russia would have a Boomerang effect (psychology), boomerang effect. On 24 March, Russia banned thirteen Canadian officials, including members of the Parliament of Canada, from entering the country. On 6 August 2014, Putin signed a decree "On the use of specific economic measures", which mandated an effective embargo for a one-year period on imports of most of the agricultural products whose country of origin had either "adopted the decision on introduction of economic sanctions in respect of Russian legal and (or) physical entities, or joined same". The next day, the Russian government ordinance was adopted and published with immediate effect, which specified the banned items as well as the countries of provenance: the United States, the European Union, Norway, Canada and Australia, including a ban on fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, milk and dairy imports. Prior to the embargo, food exports from the EU to Russia were worth around €11.8 billion, or 10% of the total EU exports to Russia. Food exports from the United States to Russia were worth around €972 million. Food exports from Canada were worth around €385 million. Food exports from Australia, mainly meat and live cattle, were worth around €170 million per year. On August 7, 2014, Russia had previously taken a position that it would not engage in "tit-for-tat" sanctions, but, announcing the embargo, Russian prime minister
Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev ( rus, links=no, Дмитрий Анатольевич Медведев, p=ˈdmʲitrʲɪj ɐnɐˈtolʲjɪvʲɪtɕ mʲɪdˈvʲedʲɪf; born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician who has been serving as the dep ...
said,
"There is nothing good in sanctions and it was not an easy decision to take, but we had to do it." He indicated that sanctions relating to the transport manufacturing sector were also being considered. United States Treasury spokesperson David Cohen said that sanctions affecting access to food were "not something that the US and its allies would ever do".
On the same day, Russia announced a ban on the use of its airspace by Ukrainian aircraft.


2015

In January 2015, it became clear that Russian authorities would not allow a Member of the European Parliament, Lithuanian MEP Gabrielius Landsbergis, to make a visit to Moscow due to political reasons. In March 2015, Latvian MEP Sandra Kalniete and Speaker of the Polish Senate Bogdan Borusewicz were both denied entry into Russia under the existing sanctions regime, and were thus unable to attend the funeral of murdered opposition politician Boris Nemtsov. On June 5, 2015, Russian government has "termporarily" banned Latvian and Estonian canned fish products citing "health" concerns. Half of the countries' exports share accounted for Russia. After a member of the German
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Comm ...
was denied entry into Russia in May 2015, Russia released a blacklist to EU authorities of 89 politicians and officials from the EU who are not allowed entry into Russia under the present sanctions regime. Russia asked for the blacklist to not be made public. The list is said to include eight Swedes, as well as two MPs and two MEPs from the Netherlands. Finland's national broadcaster ''Yle'' published a leaked German version of the list. In response to this publication, British politician Malcolm Rifkind (whose name was included on the Russian list) commented: "It shows we are making an impact because they wouldn't have reacted unless they felt very sore at what had happened. Once sanctions were extended, they've had a major impact on the Russian economy. This has happened at a time when the oil price has collapsed and therefore a main source of revenue for Mr Putin has disappeared. That's pretty important when it comes to his attempts to build up his military might and to force his neighbours to do what they're told." He added, "If there had to be such a ban, I am rather proud to be on it – I'd be rather miffed if I wasn't." Another person on the list, Swedish Member of the European Parliament, MEP Gunnar Hökmark, remarked that he was proud to be on the list and said "a regime that does this does it because it is afraid, and at heart it is weak". On May 15, 2015, with regard to Russia's entry ban on European politicians, a spokesperson from the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
said,
"The list with 89 names has now been shared by the Russian authorities. We don't have any other information on legal basis, criteria and process of this decision. We consider this measure as totally arbitrary and unjustified, especially in the absence of any further clarification and transparency."


2016

On 29 June 2016, Russian president Vladimir Putin signed a decree that extended the embargo on the countries already sanctioned until 31 December 2017. According to a 2020 study, the Russian counter-sanctions did not just serve Russia's foreign policy goals, but also facilitated Russia's protectionist policy. As a result of counter-sanctions, combined with government support of domestic agricultural production, production of grain, chicken, pork, cheese and other agricultural products has increased. Russia's food imports fell from 35% in 2013 to only 20% in 2018. The prices on these products have also risen dramatically though. In Moscow, from September 2014 to September 2018, the average price of cheese increased by 23%, milk by 35.7%, vegetable oil by 65%.


2022

On 3 May 2022, Russia's president Vladimir Putin, Putin signed a decree instructing the Russia government to create within 10 days, a list of sanctioned entities to whom exports of products and raw materials will be forbidden. This decree was described as "the Kremlin's toughest economic response" since a 31 March 2022 Russia–European Union gas dispute#decree 172, decree changing the payment schemes of natural gas contracts and Gazprom's halting of natural gas deliveries to Bulgaria and Poland on 27 April.


List of sanctioned individuals

Sanctioned individuals include notable and high-level central government personnel and businessmen on all sides. In addition, companies suggested for possible involvement in the controversial issues have also been sanctioned.


See also

*
Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act The Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) is a United States federal law that imposed sanctions on Iran, North Korea, and Russia. The bill was passed by the Senate on July 27, 2017, 98–2, after it passed the House 419 ...
(US) * Economy of Ukraine *
International Emergency Economic Powers Act The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Title II of , is a United States federal law authorizing the president to regulate international commerce after declaring a national emergency in response to any unusual and extraordinary ...
(US) * International sanctions during apartheid * International sanctions during the Venezuelan crisis * List of companies that applied sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War *
Magnitsky Act The Magnitsky Act, formally known as the Russia and Moldova Jackson–Vanik Repeal and Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012, is a bipartisan bill passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in ...
(US) * Russian financial crisis (2014–2016) * Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917 (US) * Yachts impacted by international sanctions following the Russian invasion of Ukraine


Notes


References


Further reading

* Bond, Ian, Christian Odendahl and J. Rankin. "Frozen: The politics and economics of sanctions against Russia." ''Sentre for European Reform'' (2015)
online
* Gilligan, Emma. "Smart Sanctions against Russia: Human Rights, Magnitsky and the Ukrainian Crisis." ''Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization'' 24.2 (2016): 257–277
online
* Wang, Wan. "Impact of western sanctions on Russia in the Ukraine crisis." ''Journal of Politics & Law'' 8 (2015): 1
online


External links



Reuters
Ukrainian crisis: sanctions and reactions
Information Telegraph Agency of Russia (owned by the Government of Russia)
Ukraine and Russia Sanctions
United States Department of State
EU sanctions against Russia over Ukraine crisis
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

Overview of the European Council policy on sanctions
European Council (
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
) {{Portal bar, Politics, Russia, Ukraine, United States, European Union Sanctions and boycotts during the Russo-Ukrainian War, 2010s economic history 2020s economic history 2010s in international relations 2020s in international relations Boycotts of Russia Boycotts of Ukraine Foreign relations of Russia Foreign relations of Ukraine International sanctions Russo-Ukrainian War Sanctions against Russia, Russo-Ukrainian War Reactions to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine