Ukraine: UK sanctions 370 more Russian and Belarussian nationals
The UK has sanctioned 370 more Russian and Belarussian nationals as a part of the government’s sanctions, including Vladimir Putin’s close political ally Dmitry Medvedev.
The Foreign Office today announced the released the list of the newly sanctioned individuals, which includes 51 oligarchs, with foreign secretary Liz Truss saying “we are holding them to account for their complicity in Russia’s crimes in Ukraine”.
Everyone sanctioned will have all their British assets frozen and will be banned from entering the country, while UK companies are also no longer able to do business with any person or entity listed.
New oligarchs to be sanctioned include billionaire Alfa Bank founder Mikhail Fridman, his business partner German Khan and Alexey Mordaschov – majority owner of steel company Severstal.
Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin were also sanctioned alongside Medvedev.
Two of the Russian government’s top spokespeople – Dmitry Peskov and Maria Zakharova – were branded as Putin “propagandists” by the Foreign Office and were also sanctioned.
Today’s announcement means that 1,000 individuals and entities have been sanctioned in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine – 775 of these are individuals.
“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,” Truss said.
“Working closely with our allies, we will keep increasing the pressure on Putin and cut off funding for the Russian war machine.”
The new sanctions come in as a part of the new Economic Crime Act, which gained Royal Assent today.
The new legislation “streamlined the previous legislation so the UK can respond even more swiftly and effectively to the current crisis”, according to the Foreign Office.