EU To Freeze Assets Of Putin, Lavrov
- 25.02.2022, 16:41
Measures will also be taken against Russian diplomats and businessmen.
The European Union is going to freeze the assets of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as part of a sanctions package that will be approved on Friday.
This has been reported by the Financial Times, which quoted three informed sources, reports nv.ua.
The EU foreign ministers plan to adopt a package of sanctions this afternoon. It will also include a series of measures against Russian banks and industry, the sources said.
However, Putin and Lavrov will not be subject to an EU travel ban, underscoring the EU's willingness to leave open symbolic diplomatic avenues.
The issue of freezing the assets of Putin and Lavrov was discussed by EU leaders late on Thursday, and many of them supported the idea.
Yesterday US President Joe Biden announced new sanctions against Russia for a full-scale attack on Ukraine. Sanctions are being imposed against major Russian banks, including Sberbank and VTB. Also, the US and allies will hit Russia's high-tech imports.
Prior to this, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also announced new sanctions against Russia. He said that all major Russian banks face a complete freeze of assets in the UK. The sanctions include a complete and immediate freeze on the assets of VTB, one of Russia's largest banks. The amount of money Russians can hold in British banks will be limited. Britain also plans to freeze the assets of about 100 people and companies. Aeroflot will be banned from flying to Britain.
The EU sanctions will affect five sectors: financial, energy, transport, as well as export and visa control. The EU promises that sanctions will affect 70% of the banking sector and state-owned companies, including defense ones. The placement of Russian state-owned companies on European stock exchanges, the size of deposits of Russian citizens in the EU will be limited, the export of sophisticated equipment for refineries, semiconductors, and software to Russia will be prohibited. Separately, Russian airlines will block the sale of aircraft and spare parts for them. Visa privileges for diplomats, related groups of individuals and businessmen will be abolished.