The European Commission proposes new sanctions against Russia in the areas of finance and cryptocurrencies: for the first time, a complete ban on crypto-asset services in third countries is being proposed, and new banks have been added to the list.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced this on Tuesday in Brussels while unveiling the 21st package of sanctions against Russia.
“My second point concerns financial and cryptocurrency restrictions. We are expanding our banking transactions to include 31 Russian banks and up to 20 crypto firms or platforms and oil traders in third countries that have served Russian organizations and individuals subject to sanctions or circumvented our measures,” she said.
It is also proposed to impose a complete ban on crypto-asset services in third countries. “This will be a powerful deterrent for hosting platforms in countries that help Russia circumvent our sanctions,” von der Leyen emphasized.
BANKS, CRYPTOCURRENCY, EUROPEAN COMMISSION, RUSSIA, SANCTIONS
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed two decrees enacting decisions by the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine to align sanctions with those of the European Union, according to the president’s press service.
“The synchronization of EU sanctions under the 20th package covers 120 individuals and organizations and imposes economic sanctions targeting key sectors of the Russian economy. Some of them are already subject to Ukrainian sanctions. Today’s decision applies to an additional 16 Russian citizens and 31 companies from Russia, Belarus, the UAE, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine,” the statement reads.
Among the individuals are heads of Russian strategic enterprises, state-funded institutions, units of the Russian army, and entities serving Russia in our temporarily occupied territories.
The list also includes Russian defense industry enterprises, manufacturers of electronic warfare equipment, software, and drone components, as well as companies involved in oil, gas, and gold extraction. In particular, restrictions have been imposed on the Russian manufacturer of aerospace products and drone components, LLC
“Atlant Aero,” as well as on the Russian manufacturer of communication systems and components for UAVs and missiles, LLC “Irz-Zvyazok.”
Sanctions have been imposed on companies from the UAE that sell machine tools and laboratory equipment, chemical products, and spare parts for commercial aircraft, as well as on an oil exporter in Belarus.
Ukraine has also imposed restrictive measures on three Russians: Prosecutor Lyudmila Balandina, who was involved in systematic repression and human rights violations against individuals who supported Ukraine or criticized the Russian government; Judge Dmitry Gordeev, also implicated in repression, who issued politically motivated rulings against opposition figures and human rights defenders; and Russian editor and propagandist Maria Sittel, who systematically disseminated disinformation.
Sanctions have also been imposed on 19 Iranian citizens, 7 Sudanese citizens, and 11 Iranian companies involved in Iran’s ballistic missile and drone programs.
“We continue to coordinate sanctions regimes with the EU and our partners. We expect further pressure on Russia and all those who help it sustain its aggression. We are already finalizing joint work on draft EU and partner-state sanctions decisions, including the 21st sanctions package,” noted Vladyslav Vlasyuk, the President’s Advisor and Representative on Sanctions Policy.
The UK Treasury’s Office of Sanctions has expanded the list of sanctioned companies from Georgia as part of sanctions imposed against Russia, adding three crypto companies to the list, the UK government announced.
“The new measures also target 18 companies and individuals linked to A7. The group uses a Kyrgyz bank suspected of facilitating payments for the network, as well as a major global cryptocurrency exchange that we believe has transferred over $1.5 billion to the Kremlin’s coffers. We are also targeting three Georgian companies that operate exchanges focused on Russia to circumvent sanctions,” according to a statement on the UK government’s website.
According to the document, sanctions have been imposed on Georgia-registered companies providing crypto wallet and cryptocurrency exchange services: Arvix LLC, Rapira Group LLC, and Aifory LLC.
Earlier reports indicated that on Tuesday, UK authorities added 18 individuals and companies to the sanctions list, which Russia allegedly uses to circumvent sanctions previously imposed by London.
A statement released by the UK Treasury notes that “cryptocurrency and illicit financial networks used by Russia to circumvent UK sanctions are under close scrutiny.”
“The new sanctions also target the A7 network, which actively uses Kyrgyzstan’s financial systems to redirect funds into the Russian economy,” the document states.
The measures against crypto companies mark the second instance of the UK government imposing sanctions on Georgian legal entities. Earlier, it was reported that on February 24, the UK government imposed sanctions against the Georgian TV companies Imedi TV and PosTV as part of a package of sanctions against Russia.
According to The Serbian Economist, Serbia has aligned itself with two European Union resolutions that extend existing restrictive measures related to the war in Ukraine.
The first EU resolution concerns measures against Russia’s actions regarding the occupied regions of Ukraine that are not under Kyiv’s control. Essentially, this is an extension of the special sanctions regime for another year—until February 24, 2027. Serbia supported this extension along with a number of other EU candidate countries and partners.
The second decision concerns sanctions against specific individuals, companies, and organizations in connection with the situation in Ukraine. These are not “general sanctions against Russia as a whole,” but rather an extension of the list of targeted restrictions on specific individuals until March 6, 2027.
The wording stating that Serbia “will ensure the alignment of its national policy” with this decision means the following: Belgrade has declared that it will act in line with EU policy on these two specific issues. The European Union separately noted and welcomed Serbia’s alignment in official statements.
This does not mean that Serbia has fully aligned itself with the entire EU sanctions package against Moscow. It concerns specifically these two separate decisions, not full alignment with Brussels on sanctions.
For Serbia, this is yet another example of partial foreign policy alignment with Brussels on issues related to Ukraine and Russia.
Serbia is a candidate country for EU membership and is regularly under close scrutiny by Brussels regarding the alignment of its foreign and sanctions policies with European decisions. Against this backdrop, such steps by Belgrade are usually seen as a signal of its willingness to maintain working-level coordination with the EU on specific international issues, primarily those related to the Ukrainian agenda.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree enacting the decision of the National Security and Defense Council to impose sanctions against 95 individuals and 70 legal entities, most of whom are citizens and residents of the Russian Federation.
The relevant decree of the President of Ukraine No. 8/2026 of January 3, 2026, was published on the website of the Office of the President.
It is noted that the individuals and companies against whom sanctions have been imposed are associated with servicing Russia’s state defense orders and the activities of its defense-industrial complex. Among them are enterprises and their managers who manufacture and supply products in the fields of communications, electronic warfare, and microelectronics for the Russian defense-industrial complex and security forces.
Sanctions have been imposed on industrial enterprises in the chemical, mining, metallurgical, and fuel and energy sectors of the Russian Federation.
“The restrictions imposed should complicate the servicing of the Russian military-industrial complex and limit its capabilities in the production of weapons and military equipment used in the war against Ukraine. Our country will continue to work with partners to synchronize Ukrainian sanctions in the jurisdictions of partner countries. Some of the items will be included in the 20th package of EU sanctions, which is currently being prepared,” the statement said.
According to Serbian Economist, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury (OFAC) has issued a temporary license to Serbian oil company NIS, controlled by Russian shareholders, to continue operating until January 23, 2026, said Serbian Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Djedovic-Handanovic.
According to her, the decision means the resumption of operations at the Pančevo refinery after a 36-day pause. U.S. restrictions, which came into effect in the fall, had earlier blocked oil supplies via the refinery’s only crude import route – through Croatian pipeline operator JANAF.
NIS operates a refinery with a capacity of 4.8 million tons per year and the largest network of gas stations in Serbia (327 stations), providing about 80% of fuel consumption in the domestic market.
Earlier OFAC gave NIS a deadline of March 24 to negotiate the sale of the Russian owners’ stake; in the company’s capital structure Gazprom owns 11.3%, Gazprom Neft – 44.9%, the Serbian state owns 29.9%. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic reported that Gazprom was in talks with Hungary’s MOL about a possible deal.
https://t.me/relocationrs/2042
