The European Union on Monday approved new sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, which diplomats say include Roman Abramovich on the list of Russian citizens affected by the restrictions.
The rotating presidency of the European Council tweeted that representatives of the bloc’s countries had reached an agreement in Brussels on a fourth package of sanctions on people and companies “involved in the attack on Ukraine”.
The measures “will come into force when they are published in the Official Journal of the European Union”, stressed the French presidency of the Council of the EU, which should take place tomorrow.
Three diplomats in Brussels told AFP that Abramovich, owner of English football club Chelsea, had been added to the list. The Russian tycoon’s assets outside the EU — including luxury yachts and mansions — could be confiscated.
The UK and Canada have already included Abramovich on their own lists of sanctioned Russian citizens. The UK’s announcement to sanction Abramovich even thwarted an attempt by the mogul to sell the football club.
According to one of the diplomats consulted by AFP, the stated reason for sanctioning Abramovich is that he is a “Russian oligarch who has close and long-standing ties to [o presidente] Vladimir Putin”, to whom he has “privileged access”.
Furthermore, he is considered to provide “a substantial source of revenue” for the Russian government.
There are no ‘untouchables’
Over the weekend, the 140-metre-long Solaris yacht, owned by Abramovich, was seen arriving at a port in Montenegro, a country that is not part of the EU but has ambitions to join the bloc. The vessel had left Barcelona days before.
Abramovich, 55, is estimated to be worth US$12.4 billion, according to Forbes magazine, and is rumored to own half a dozen yachts. The Russian tycoon also adopted Portuguese and Israeli nationalities.
European Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said on Monday that “there is no one untouchable, as you will see, this list of oligarchs is continuously expanding, not only with tycoons but also with high level Russian and military officers”. .
Dombrovskis added that people considered “active in Russia’s propaganda machine” were also on the list.
Russia’s economy is expected to shrink sharply due to successive rounds of sanctions imposed by the EU, the United States and various allies, targeting the Central Bank of Russia.
On February 24, Putin ordered Russian troops to begin operations on Ukrainian territory, triggering unprecedented Western sanctions against Russia and triggering an exodus of foreign companies from the country.
The coordinated response by the United States and the EU has made Russia the most sanctioned country in the world, causing the ruble to fall freely and accelerating inflation, as well as raising fears of a debt default.
European diplomacy chief Josep Borrell on Monday condemned the “barbaric” invasion of Ukraine and confirmed a fourth package of sanctions against the Kremlin.
Borrell said Moscow is shooting not only at the Ukrainian military, but also at civilians. He also recalled that in the strategic city of Mariupol, in southern Ukraine, “more than 2,400 civilians have been killed” since the beginning of the invasion.
“Putin’s war is not just about Ukraine, but also about the security and stability of our European continent. It affects all of us,” Borrell told a news conference in Skopje, North Macedonia.
More than 2.6 million Ukrainians fled the fighting, “the biggest movement since World War II”, he added.
Borrell also confirmed a fourth package of sanctions against Russian trade, market access, membership of international financial institutions and the export of luxury goods, specifically targeting the steel, coal and energy sectors.
“This will be another huge blow to the economic and logistical base on which the Kremlin is building the invasion and taking the resources to finance it,” said the head of European diplomacy.
The EU’s diplomatic leader called the Western Balkans a “strategic priority” for the European bloc.
“This is, I hope, the moment of awakening for Europe,” he added, after meeting with the Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovačevski.
“It is time to give new impetus to the enlargement process and to firmly anchor the Western Balkans in the European Union”, he insisted.
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