Local time on Monday (February 24), the EU Foreign Affairs Council adopted the 16th round of sanctions against Russia, including new economic and personal restrictive measures. Notably, some Russian comedians, chess masters, TV hosts, and athletes have also been included on the sanctions list. The organization announced this decision in its official publication, so the sanctions package has officially come into effect.
In the 16th round of sanctions, the EU has prohibited 13 Russian banks from using the SWIFT international funds clearing system and banned 8 Russian media outlets from broadcasting in EU countries. In addition, the list of so - called "shadow fleet" vessels has been expanded, with 74 more ships added. Currently, a total of 153 vessels are under sanctions.
Meanwhile, 48 natural persons and 35 legal entities have been added to the blacklist. The EU believes that they are responsible for "undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine".
Among them, 46 - year - old Russian comedian and TV host Mikhail Galustyan has also been sanctioned. He campaigned for Russian President Vladimir Putin in the 2012 and 2018 elections.
The EU accuses Galustyan of "militarizing Russian youth" on the grounds that he is the president of the Russian Military and Tactical Games Federation and a member of the "Yunarmiya" military movement.
Galustyan commented on Monday that the EU's blacklist was a complete surprise to him. He said, "Obviously, if European politicians start persecuting and sanctioning actors, cultural figures, and satirists who bring joy and smiles to people, they have run out of ideas."
The EU's blacklist also includes other well - known Russians, such as TV host Yulia Baranovskaya, blogger and media manager Kristina Potupchik, chess master Sergey Karjakin, and Olympic gymnastics champion Nikita Nagorny.
Other sanctioned individuals include Senator Andrey Derkach from the Astrakhan region, General Manager Yan Novikov of the arms manufacturer Almaz - Antey, shareholder Igor Kudryashkin of the Ural Mining Company, and CEO Boris Bogatryov of STAN, a Russian developer and manufacturer of CNC machine tools.
In addition, the latest sanctions have added measures targeting equipment, technology, and maintenance in Russia's oil and gas exploration and transportation sectors. EU companies are also prohibited from having financial transactions with multiple Russian ports and airports. At the same time, EU countries are banned from importing primary aluminum from Russia and exporting aircraft and related technologies to Russia.
Last month, all 27 EU member states unanimously agreed to extend the economic sanctions against Russia for six months until July 31. These sanctions cover a wide range of areas, including trade, travel bans, and energy.
Russia has condemned Western restrictions as illegal. They have neither undermined the stability of the Russian economy nor isolated Russia from the global financial system.
Putin previously stated that containing and weakening Russia is a long - term strategy of the West. The sanctions have severely hit the global economy, and the main goal of the West is to worsen the lives of millions of people.