The Australian authorities have decided to soon impose a ban on the import of oil, gas, coal and oil products from Russia, The Guardian reports on Friday, citing a representative of the Australian Foreign Ministry.
“This decision does not threaten Australia’s energy security. Australia has diversified and sustainable oil supply chains and adequate oil reserves thanks to the government’s comprehensive energy security policy,” he said.
The ban will take effect no earlier than in 45 days. In this regard, the representative of the ministry specified for The Guardian, ships carrying already paid energy carriers from the Russian Federation will be able to arrive for shipment in Australian ports.
He noted that Australia does not import these goods from Russia in significant volumes. At the same time, the diplomat expressed the opinion that since energy resources are the largest source of export earnings to the Russian Federation, restrictions on their acquisition by Australia and its allies will reduce Moscow’s ability to operate in Ukraine.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday signed a decree banning the import of oil, oil products, as well as liquefied natural gas and coal from Russia, which led to another jump in prices on the global energy market.
The British authorities also announced their intention to stop buying Russian oil within the next few months.
Meanwhile, the Financial Times said that the U.S. authorities are actively looking for new energy supplies after the refusal to import Russian oil, trying to prevent further growth in fuel prices at American gas stations.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky by decree put into effect the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) to impose personal economic sanctions against Russian enterprises and organizations, the presidential press service said. The decision to impose sanctions against Russian enterprises, companies, organizations was made by the NSDC on December 30, 2021. Zelensky on January 21, by decree No.19, put into effect the NSDC decision.
As noted, some 24 enterprises fell under the sanctions. They have the same restrictions. In particular, this is the freezing of assets, the restriction of trade operations, the prevention of the withdrawal of capital from Ukraine, suspension of the fulfillment of economic and financial obligations, cancellation or suspension of licenses and permits, the receipt (availability) of which is a condition for the implementation of a certain type of activity.
The list included such enterprises as JSC Lenpromtransproekt, JSC Insurance Business Group, Gas JSC Industry Insurance Company, JSC Grand Service Express Transport Company, JSC Giproshakht, JSC Russian Institute of Urban Planning and Investment Development “Giprogor,” COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Wolf D. Prix & Partner ZT GmbH, ALARM911 Neva LLC, Geozemstroy LLC, Krymsetenergoproekt LLC, Research Institute of Diagnostics LLC, Research Institute of Perspective Urban Planning LLC, Nivad LLC, SIRIUS Project LLC, Transproekt LLC, Tyus Management Group LLC, Transstroy Holding Company LLC, Federal Target Program”Modernization of the Russian Transport System of Russia,” the Federal State Enterprise “Departmental storage of railway transport of the Russian Federation,” Federal State Enterprise “Departmental Security Department of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation,” Fund for Social and Cultural Projects “National Cultural Heritage,” Autonomous NGO for the Promotion of Activities “Russian Seasons,” State Autonomous Institution of the City of Sevastopol “Development Center tourism.”
Ukraine has imposed sanctions against the Austrian architectural bureau “Coop Himmelb(l)au,” which developed the project for an opera house in Sevastopol, temporarily occupied by Russia.
The decree on the entry into force of the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of December 30, 2021 was signed by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky on January 21.
Personal sanctions have been imposed against founder and CEO of the architectural office Wolf Prix, and its five managers and employees (citizens of Austria).
Assets are blocked for five years, the right to use and dispose of their property is temporarily restricted. It also provides for a denial of visas, the application of other prohibitions on entry into the territory of Ukraine, a ban on participation in privatization, lease of state property.
Another decree put into effect the decision of the National Security and Defense Council, which, in particular, imposed sanctions against the Russian Artemy Lebedev.
In addition, personal sanctions have been imposed on Yury Chaika, authorized representative of the Russian President in the North Caucasus Federal District.
The Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) has imposed at a session on Thursday sanctions against individuals and legal entities involved in the construction and operations of the bridge over the Kerch Strait, NSDC Secretary Oleksiy Danilov said at a briefing following the session.
The NSDC press service said later that those sanctions were imposed on six individuals and 24 legal entities.
Sanctions were also imposed on 18 people involved in the issuance of unlawful court rulings to deprive the Crimea diocese of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine of its property in the temporary occupied territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, it said.
According to the NSDC, 52 people holding senior positions in Crimea were also sanctioned for doing considerable damage to the national interests and security of the Ukrainian people, the NSDC said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has imposed sanctions on two Ukrainian TV channels, namely, Pershyi Nezalezhnyi and UkrLive, the presidential press service said in a statement.
“To endorse the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) resolution dated December 28, 2021, ‘On special personal economic and other restrictions (sanctions)’,” the presidential order said.
In particular, the president endorsed the NSDC resolution regarding sanctions on Novyny Media Holding, Time Media, and Teleprostir.
The order takes effect on the publishing date.
From now on, Ukrainian officials will be prohibited from issuing any licenses and allowing use of radio frequencies in Ukraine to the sanctioned channels.
Legal entities owning the channels will be prohibited from conducting financial operations in the Ukrainian territory and using accounts in Ukrainian banks.
The sanctions will be valid for five years.
As many as 153 members of Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada have endorsed the initiative of Vladlen Nekliudov of the parliamentary faction of the Servant of the People party requesting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky impose sanctions on the enterprises of the Roshen confectionery corporation for “financing the budget of the aggressor state Russian Federation.”
The relevant decision was made at a parliamentary session on Friday.
Roshen, a leading confectionary producer in Ukraine, operates confectionery factories in Kyiv, Mariupol, Kremenchuk, Boryspil, Vinnytsia, Klaipeda (Lithuania), and Bonbonetti Choco in Hungary. The operations of the factory in Lipetsk, Russia, were halted on April 1, 2017.
According to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs, Roshen’s end beneficiary is Poroshenko’s son Oleksiy.
In December 2016, the Basmanny District Court of Moscow froze the assets of Roshen’s Lipetsk factory as part of a criminal case of embezzlement from the Russian budget.
