The EU adopts sanctions against Putin and the Russian economy, which come into force this Friday

The countries of the European Union have approved this Friday their sanctions against Russia for the large-scale attack against Ukraine, in a battery that includes restrictions on banks, energy, finance, exports, transport and visa policy, in addition to personal sanctions against the Russian president, Vladimir Putinand the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov.

This has been confirmed by the Latvian Foreign Minister, Edgars Rinkevics, who has indicated that the package unanimously agreed by the Twenty-seven includes the freezing of assets of Putin and Lavrov. “We will prepare a third package”, he has assured, advancing new European measures against Moscow in the middle of the war against the neighboring country.

“We have hit Putin’s system where it needs to be hit, not only economically and financially but in terms of power. That is why we not only put oligarchs on the list, numerous deputies who prepared these steps, but now we also include President Putin and Foreign Minister Lavrov”, the German foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, had said upon her arrival at the meeting.

“We will prepare a third package”

In addition to the direct sanctions on Putin and Lavrov, the foreign ministers of the Twenty-seven have given their approval today to the second package of retaliation of the EU against Moscow, which seeks to drown the Russian economy with measures against its financial system and also on the energy sectors and transportation.

The focus is on cutting bank financing Alfa Bank and Bank Otkritie (which are added to other entities already sanctioned) and public companies such as Kamaz, Rostec or Almaz-Anteyas well as prohibit the opening of new deposits of Russian citizens in European banks and the purchase of shares in Russian companies.

The energy sanctions seek to prevent Moscow from having the appropriate technology to modernize its oil refineries, the transport sanctions restrict the sale and purchase of aircraft and aircraft components, and the new trade measures attack sectors such as electronics, information technology or telecommunications. .

However, issues such as the possibility of removing from the SWIFT messaging system to Russian banks or trade in gas and luxury products, issues that the EU could include in future actions.

The EU defends that it is an unprecedented harshness, but that it leaves room to continue responding if Moscow advances in its aggression against Ukraine.