Britain imposes new sanctions on 70 entities in Russia economy

Today, Tuesday, Britain announced the imposition of a new package of sanctions on Russia, targeting dozens of financial and commercial entities and ships linked to what is known as the “Shadow Fleet,” in a move that London said aims to undermine the financing and supply networks that support the Russian war effort in Ukraine.

The new sanctions included Yandex Bank and a network linked to Russian military intelligence, in addition to dozens of ships accused of transporting Russian oil and gas to third countries to circumvent Western restrictions imposed on Moscow.

The sanctions also affected about 70 new entities, including the insurance company “Rosgostrakh”, the “Evro Finance Mosnar” bank and the “Wild Berries” company, as part of the British government’s efforts to intensify economic pressure on Russia.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who is participating in the G7 summit held in France, said, “These sanctions target ships, money, and destinations that support the Russian war economy, and thus threaten European security.”

The measures include more than 20 oil tankers and several ships transporting liquefied natural gas, while London described it as the first time that a G7 country has imposed sanctions on ships linked to the Russian “Arctic LNG 2” project.

Sanctions on 600 ships

London says it has so far imposed sanctions on nearly 600 ships from the “shadow fleet,” the term given to ships used to transport Russian oil outside traditional frameworks of Western oversight and sanctions.

Last March, Starmer granted the British army the authority to board ships suspected of helping Russia export oil, and detain them despite the restrictions imposed on them.

In the first such operation led by Britain, British special forces boarded an oil tanker belonging to the sanctioned Shadow Fleet and intercepted it in the English Channel last Sunday.

The new sanctions also targeted a procurement network that Britain said was affiliated with Russian military intelligence, and centered around the company “Neptune Co Ltd”, accusing it of secretly obtaining Western technology for the benefit of the Russian defense sector.

This step comes at a time when Western countries continue to increase economic pressure on Moscow, by targeting transportation, financing and supply networks that they consider supportive of the continuation of Russian military operations in Ukraine.