Seven Russian banks disconnected from SWIFT. Head of the European Commission: Sanctions adopted at the speed of light

Seven Russian banks will be disconnected from the global SWIFT financial settlement system. The decision of the EU countries entered into force with its publication in the Official Journal. The international company SWIFT has already announced that it is ready to disconnect as soon as such a decision is made.

VTB is the second largest bank among the seven that are subject to sanctions. However, there is no largest Sberbank and Gazprombank. Officials in Brussels explain that it was about keeping the transaction in the energy sector, because some countries are dependent on supplies from. The acquisition of seven Russian banks also has an additional 10-day grace period. This transition period, in turn, has been agreed to prepare European banks for changes, as EU officials explain.

Russia disconnected from SWIFT, Ursula von der Leyen praises the EU

The disconnection of key Russian banks from the SWIFT system is another clear signal for the Kremlin as well, wrote the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on Twitter. She also recalled the sanctions imposed on Russia to date for the attack on Ukraine.

At the speed of light, the European Union has adopted sanctions against the Russian financial system, the high-tech industry and the corrupt elite. This is the largest package of sanctions in the history of our Union

– emphasized the head of the Commission, adding that the decision to disconnect some Russian banks from the SWIFT system was closely coordinated with the EU’s international partners, such as the United Kingdom.

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Poland, along with the Baltic states, called for the exclusion of all Russian banks from the SWIFT system, and Ukraine itself expressed such expectations. On the other hand, there was no unanimous agreement among the member states.

Belarus will also face sanctions, but it stays in SWIFT for the time being

The ambassadors of EU countries agreed to economic sanctions against for complicity in the invasion of Ukraine. The findings of the Brussels correspondent of the Polish Radio, Beata Płomecka, show that it is a ban on the export of goods, but there is no decision to remove Belarus from the SWIFT financial settlement system.

Tobacco, wood, cement and steel – including the export of products from these sectors is to be blocked. How exactly this list looks like will be known after publication in the Official Journal and then the sanctions will come into force.

As for the exclusion of Belarusian banks from the SWIFT system, as diplomats explain, time for discussions and decisions is still needed.

At the morning meeting of the ambassadors, it was also decided to remove the economic gaps already imposed on the regime in Minsk in June last year. They included, inter alia, petroleum products – there is a ban on imports from Belarus, as well as their transport.

The EU has also decided not to buy the potassium salts used in the production of chemical fertilizers. It turned out, however, that the Belarusian regime is exploiting loopholes in the regulations and has continued to export some products prohibited by sanctions. Now the sanctions have been clarified. It is about legal clarifications so that companies and authorities of EU countries have accurate information about the products covered by the restrictions, so that there is no doubt.

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A special Ukrainian edition of the newspaper for people fleeing the war.