EU expands sanctions list for turbines illegally supplied to Crimea

The European Commission announced on Aug. 4 it has
expanded its list of sanctions against the Russian government to three
companies and three Russians for their role in illegally supplying Siemens
natural gas turbines to illegally annexed Crimea. Those targeted are Deputy
Energy Minister Andrey Cherezov, Energy Ministry official Yevgeny Grabchak and
Tekhpromeksport Head Sergey Topor-Gilka. The list of sanctions, first imposed
in March 2014, now includes asset freezes and travel bans on 153 individuals
and 40 organizations, the Commission announced.

As its response, the Russian Foreign Ministry said the
new sanctions were an unfriendly and unjustified step. “The impression is that
our German colleagues have adopted the practice of an expanded interpretation
of sanctions restrictions, which directly contradicts international law and
principles of international relations as a whole,” the statement said. The
reasons for the sanctions are absolutely invented and the Russian government
reserves the right to respond, the statement said.

Zenon Zawada: Sanctions are the best instrument for the West to pressure Russia
without provoking an escalation of warfare in Ukraine. Sooner or later, Putin
will have to decide on whether it’s worth it for him to remain in Ukraine. That
decision could come as early as this year, or it could be in several years. We
can only hope that he swallows his pride and chooses rationally, for the sake
of the stability of not only his own country, but the world as well.