Another 350 individuals and entities added to UK’s Russian sanctions list
The announcement followed economic sanctions announced earlier on Tuesday.
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Your support makes all the difference.Sanctions have been announced against a further 350 Russian individuals and entities in measures designed to hit the Kremlin following the invasion of Ukraine.
An update to the Gov.uk on Tuesday said that 350 new listings had been made under the Russia sanctions regime.
The Foreign Office later said including sanctions levelled at Belarus, the number of new listings was more than 370.
It is understood the new additions will bring the UK in line with restrictive measures already announced by the European Union. The Foreign Office said that over 1,000 individuals, entities, and subsidiaries under the Russia sanctions regime since the invasion of Ukraine.
The list of those sanctioned has been expanded to include a further 51 Russian oligarchs and their families, plus a raft of politicians and “propagandists”.
These include Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and former President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev.
Vladimir Putin’s Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov and Russian Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Maria Zakharova are also on the list, as is internet ‘troll farm’, the Internet Research Agency.
Russian oligarchs now subject to UK sanctions include Mikhail Fridman, Pyotr Aven, and German Khan. The Foreign Office said the oligarchs sanctioned on Tuesday have a combined estimated worth of more than £100 billion.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “We are going further and faster than ever in hitting those closest to Putin – from major oligarchs, to his Prime Minister, and the propagandists who peddle his lies and disinformation. We are holding them to account for their complicity in Russia’s crimes in Ukraine.
“Working closely with our allies, we will keep increasing the pressure on Putin and cut off funding for the Russian war machine.”
Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he welcomed Western sanctions but they “are not enough” to end the Russian aggression, calling for a full trade embargo.
Boris Johnson, who was hosting a meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force nations in London which was addressed by Mr Zelensky via video-link, said: “I hear your point very loud and clear about the economic sanctions that we need to tighten, where we need to go harder on the banks, on Swift.”
Further general economic sanctions were also announced on Tuesday, with the export of high-end luxury products to Russia being banned and import tariffs hiked on hundreds of goods, including vodka.
But Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran said: “This is shutting the door after the private jet has bolted. The Government has finally got their act together – but we should have been in this position weeks ago. This delay has given Putin’s cronies a priceless window to fire-sale their assets.
“Now we need to go further. There are still too many associates of Putin getting away with it as we speak.
“The fix to sanctions legislation is good news – but it means we can merely copy what our allies do. Liz Truss should bring proposals to Parliament to strengthen the legislation even further, so we can truly lead the way in clamping down on Kremlin-linked oligarchs.”