UK announces sanctions on eve of second anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine

The United Kingdom announced new sanctions against Russia for its aggression against Ukraine on Thursday, 22 February, on the eve of the second anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion.

Source: the UK government's website, reported by European Pravda

Quote from UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron: "Ukraine has shown that it can and will defend itself. Putin mistakenly thought that because Russia’s economy is bigger than Ukraine’s, he would gain a quick victory. But the economies of Ukraine’s friends are 25 times bigger than Russia’s. Our sanctions are starving Putin of the resources he desperately needs to fund his struggling war."

Details: The new sanctions target companies involved in the production of munitions, such as missile systems, rockets, explosives and other critical goods used in military equipment. Sanctions were imposed on the Sverdlov State Enterprise, the largest company in the Russian ammunition industry.

Key Russian importers and machine tool manufacturers, which play an important role in the production of vital defence systems and components, from missiles and engines to tanks and fighter jets, were also targeted.

Oil trader Niels Troost and his company Paramount Energy & Commodities SA, which facilitates the unimpeded trade of Russian oil not restricted by the sanctions, have also been targeted.

The sanctions also affect Fractal Marine DMCC, Beks Ship Management and Active Shipping, which operate in the Russian energy sector and are part of the shadow fleet that helps transport Russian oil.

Two Russian diamond companies and Pavel Marinichev, the new CEO of Alrosa, Russia's largest state-owned diamond producer, also appeared on the sanctions list, along with five top executives or owners of Russia's largest copper, zinc and steel producers.

Background:

• Earlier, Sky News reported that British equipment and machinery worth hundreds of millions of pounds continues to enter Russia through the countries of the South Caucasus and Central Asia, including Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Uzbekistan.
• This is not the first evidence of such exports. It was reported earlier that in the first 10 months of 2023, UK-based companies exported critical components to Russia, including semiconductors and drones, worth more than US$100 million.

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