Category: Sanctions News

Hungary Seeking to Lift EU Sanctions From Russian Billionaires

Hungary wants to remove eight individuals from the European Union’s Russia sanctions list and receive fresh guarantees on Ukraine gas transit talks before agreeing to renew the restrictions, EU diplomats said.EU sanctions on Russia – imposed over Moscow’s war against Ukraine – must be renewed every six months by a unanimous vote and Budapest has often used these renewals as bargaining opportunities. On Monday, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wrote on Facebook that Budapest would “not consent to rushing ahead” with the…

EU court adviser backs Vienna in fight against Russian-built nuclear reactors in Hungary

Austria’s legal fight against Hungarian nuclear reactors built by Russian companies is valid, the adviser to the EU’s top court ruled. Back in 2017, Brussels approved a Budapest request to finance the construction of a new nuclear power plant, Paks II, in the heart of the country. It was to be built by a Russian company, Nizhny Novgorod Engineering. Austria sued and lost a lower court case in 2022. Today, the advocate general of the Court of Justice of the…

Israeli Freight Forwarder Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Violating Export Restrictions Imposed on Russia

Gal Haimovich, 49, of Israel, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiracy to illegally ship aircraft parts and avionics from U.S. manufacturers and suppliers to Russia, including for the benefit of sanctioned Russian airline companies. In addition, Haimovich paid the full forfeiture amount of $2,024,435.44 at today’s sentencing. As part of his plea agreement, Haimovich admitted that his scheme involved deceiving U.S. companies about the true destination of the goods at…

EU Slaps Fresh Sanctions on Russia, Targeting Aluminum and ‘Shadow Fleet’ Ships

EU countries have agreed on a new round of sanctions against Russia, diplomats said Wednesday, as the bloc looks to maintain pressure on Moscow ahead of the third anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The wide-ranging package, which includes a ban on imports of Russian aluminum, will be formally adopted by EU foreign ministers on Monday. “The EU is clamping down even harder on circumvention by targeting more vessels in Putin’s shadow fleet and imposing new import and export…

Gucci registers brand in Russia

MOSCOW, February 19. /TASS/. Guccio Gucci, an Italian company, filed the Gucci trademark with the Russian Federal Intellectual Property Service, according to the authority’s data. The application was submitted on June 2, 2023, and the state registration was completed on February 18, 2025. The trademark holder is Guccio Gucci, based in Florence. The trademark was approved under the International Classification of Goods and Services and allows for the production and sale of branded dresses and bags, fabrics, women’s underwear, swimwear,…

Rosatom’s overseas orders portfolio above $200 bln in 2024

MOSCOW, February 13. /TASS/. The portfolio of Rosatom’s international orders was over $200 bln in 2024, Ekaterina Lyakhova, the Business Development Director of the Russian state nuclear corporation, said during the Russian Business Week. “Rosatom is indeed working proactively in the international market. We are currently present in more than sixty countries. Export revenues of the last year totaled more than $18 bln and the portfolio of overseas orders is above $200 bln,” she said. “We offer a very high…

Russia stands for Syria’s integrity, sovereignty — Putin

NOVO-OGARYOVO, February 12. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syria’s new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa have exchanged views on the situation in the country, the Kremlin press service reported, citing the content of the telephone conversation between the heads of state. “The sides held a substantive exchange of views on the current situation in Syria,” the statement said. “The Russian side stressed its principled position in support of the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Syrian state,” the press service…

Canadian National Sentenced to 40 Months for Multimillion-Dollar Export Control Scheme

Nikolay Goltsev, a Canadian national, was sentenced to 40 months in prison for orchestrating a multimillion-dollar export scheme that provided advanced U.S. electronic components to sanctioned Russian military companies. Goltsev used two Brooklyn-based companies to source and ship dual-use technology through intermediary front companies in countries like Turkey, Hong Kong, and the UAE, ultimately rerouting the products to Russia. The electronics, including components for precision-guided weapons, were found in Russian weapons systems used in Ukraine. Goltsev demonstrated awareness of U.S….

Russia’s Military Found a Simple Way to Buy US Chips

Ever since the US and its allies imposed sanctions on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, Western officials have been frustrated by Moscow’s continued ability to get its hands on American technologies to help power its war efforts. Russian weapons recovered from battlefields in the region are chock full of gear from firms like Intel Corp. and Analog Devices Inc., much to the frustration of officials in Washington, Brussels and Kyiv. The nagging question: Why are trade controls failing? A…

EU court upholds legal service ban to Russian entities, individuals

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The EU Court of Justice upheld on Wednesday its ban on the provision of legal advice to Russian entities and individuals. The measure was first introduced in 2022 by the European Union as part of sweeping sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine. The ruling came after the Dutch bar association of Brussels, the Paris bar and others had asked for the measure to be annulled. “The prohibition thus applies only to legal advice…

Latvian national extradited to US for illegal exports to Russia

A US press release has announced the extradition of Oleg Chistyakov, a Latvian national. Chistyakov has made his first appearance in federal court in Kansas, accused of conspiring “to facilitate the sale, repair and shipment” of US-origin avionics equipment” for use in Russian aircraft. Many of the customers Chistyakov’s supposed scheme shipped to are on the US Commerce Department’s Entity List. Chistyakov allegedly conspired with 2 US citizens, Cyril Greogry Buyanovksy and Douglas Edward Robertson. Both Americans have already pleaded…

Spain Allows Russian Sailboat to Make Port Call Despite Sanctions

Spanish authorities have granted an emergency request for the replica of an 18th-century Russian frigate to make a port call so that it can replenish provisions and replace broken parts, media reported Tuesday. The EU implemented a ban on Russian vessels docking at its ports as part of a broader sanctions package in response to Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Russian frigate, called Shtandart, is captained by its builder Vladimir Martus, who last week accused French and Spanish authorities of blocking…

UK updates GL for subsidiaries of VTB & Sberbank

OFSI has updated General Licence INT/2022/1280876 which permits certain UK, EU and Guernsey subsidiaries of VTB and Sberbank (Russian banks) to make payment for basic needs, reasonable fees or service charges arising from routine holding and maintenance of its frozen funds and the payment of legal fees and insolvency-related services. § 5.2 of the GL has been amended to change the Insolvency Proceedings that apply to EU subsidiary, OWH SE. All UK GLs are on the UK Licensing.

Swiss government adopts more EU sanctions against Russia

ZURICH (Reuters) – Switzerland has expanded its sanctions against Russia to include additional measures recently taken up by the European Union against Moscow over its ongoing aggression against Ukraine, the Swiss government said on Tuesday. Pointing to a package of measures adopted by the EU against Russia on June 24, the Swiss economy ministry said in a statement that it would impose sanctions within its jurisdiction on a further 69 individuals and 86 entities. These sanctions mainly target “businesspersons, propagandists,…

US official sees China-Russia ties posing long-term challenge to European security

WASHINGTON, July 6. /TASS/. The US administration views Moscow’s cooperation with Beijing which Washington alleges has supported Russia’s defense industry as a long-term challenge for security in Europe. Speaking at a special press briefing in the run-up to NATO’s summit in Washington on July 9-11, a senior US official said that the summit communique would have “strong language” on China. “The draft communique text on the PRC is very solid. You’ll see that when it’s unveiled,” the official said. “And…

Russia Adds Journalist Kriger to ‘Terrorists and Extremists’ List

Russia’s state financial watchdog Rosfinmonitoring has added journalist Artyom Kriger to its list of “terrorists and extremists,” his employer SOTAvision reported on Thursday. Russia’s state financial watchdog Rosfinmonitoring has added journalist Artyom Kriger to its list of “terrorists and extremists,” his employer SOTAvisionreported on Thursday. Kriger, 23, was arrested last week on charges related to the “extremism” case against late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, according to SOTAvision, an independent news outlet. The journalist was accused of “participation in an extremist…