European Union: sixteenth package of sanctions against Russia

2025-02-25 Alert EUROPEAN UNION International Sanctions UNIÓN EUROPEA

On the third anniversary of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the European Union has adopted the sixteenth package of sanctions, whose legal basis consists of the following amending acts:

In this new package, an additional 48 individuals and 35 entities are designated on the list, which subjects them to the measures of freezing of their assets in the EU, entry into or transit through the EU and a ban on the provision of funds by European citizens and entities. Additionally, two new criteria for specific sanctions are introduced:

(1) those who own or operate vessels within Russia’s “shadow fleet”;

(2) those who support or benefit from Russia’s military-industrial complex.

Tabla de contenidos

1 Transport sector
2 Financial sector
3 Security and defence sector
4 Telecommunications sector
5 Energy sector
6 Construction and Sensitive Trade
7 Occupied territories
8 Sanctions on Belarus

Transport sector

Seventy-four vessels have been added to the list of sanctioned vessels. The designated vessels have either circumvented restrictive measures imposed on the oil sector and the energy sector in general in Russia, or have transported Russian military equipment or Ukrainian grain that is presumed to have been plundered. The total number of vessels sanctioned with bans on access to European ports and auxiliary services now stands at 153.

Moreover, transactions have been prohibited at certain Russian ports, locks and airports that have been used for the transport of unmanned aerial vehicles (“U.A.V.s”) or to circumvent other restrictive measures. This prohibition includes access to the port and enjoyment of its services.

Moreover, flight bans in the European Union have been extended to designated airlines operating domestic flights in Russia. A ban has been issued for the export of aircraft and other aviation equipment as well.

The ban on road transport by European operators with a 25% or more shareholding by Russian persons or entities has also been strengthened. The new measure prohibits capital restructuring of transports resulting in a shareholding of more than 25% by Russian natural persons or legal entities.

Financial sector

A ban has been imposed for the first time on transactions with banks or credit institutions established outside Russia using the “Russian Central Bank’s System for Financial Message Transfers”. Thus, the prohibition on providing specialised financial messaging services is extended to 13 regional banks of considerable importance to the Russian financial system.

In addition, Garantex, a cryptocurrency exchange platform associated with sanctioned Russian banks, has been included.

Security and defence sector

Fifty-three entities have been designated to the list of those directly assisting the Russian armed forces or military industry, two-thirds of which are non-Russian. These entities will have further restrictions on trade in dual-use goods and technologies.

The list of products restricted due to their possible contribution to Russia’s technological development in the defence and security sectors has been extended; restricted products include chloropicrin precursor chemicals and other chemical riot control agents; computer numerical control machine software; chromium compound; and controls used to steer unmanned aerial vehicles.

Further restrictions have also been introduced on the export and transit through Russia of products that can contribute to the development of Russian industrial capacity, and on the import of Russian primary aluminium.

Telecommunications sector

The broadcasting licences of eight Russian channels under permanent control of the Russian government have been suspended and the transmission of their content banned. These entities are accused of being essential and instrumental to Russian operations in Ukraine. These entities are:

Eurasia Daily (EADaily),
Fondsk,
Slow,
NewsFront,
RuBaltic,
SouthFront,
Strategic Culture Foundation,
Krasnaya Zvezda (Tvzvezda).

The ban does not prevent them from conducting investigative journalism or interviews in the Union.

Energy sector

A ban has been imposed on the provision of services, products or technologies for the development of Russia’s hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation capacity and for the completion of oil extraction projects, such as the Vostok oil line, and in particular, software related to oil and natural gas exploitation.

Temporary storage of Russian oil and oil products in the EU has also been banned, regardless of the price and destination of the products.

Construction and Sensitive Trade

EU operators are prohibited from providing construction services in Russia, including civil engineering works. Additionally, EU companies selling sensitive goods to third countries must implement due diligence mechanisms to prevent re-exportation to Russia.

Occupied territories

It has been prohibited to provide architectural, civil engineering or construction services; accounting, business administration or auditing services; tax or legal consultancy; advertising, marketing and public relations services; and technical consultancy and systems analysis services in the occupied territories, including Crimea, Sevastopol, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporozhe.

Sanctions on Belarus

Finally, the trade sanctions imposed on Russia are also extended to Belarus, with the introduction of a new sanction criterion targeting individuals, entities, or organisations that support or benefit from Belarus’s military-industrial complex. Furthermore, restrictions have been placed on the provision of crypto-asset wallets to Belarusian citizens, and it is prohibited to accept deposits exceeding €100,000 from Belarusian nationals or residents.

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More information:

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