Ukraine introduces sanctions against Russian aggression supporters

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a Sept. 16 decree imposing economic sanctions against 388 individuals and 105 Russian and Ukrainian firms and organizations that supported the Russian military aggression against Ukraine, including the annexation of Crimea and occupation of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

The firms and organizations list includes 30 transportation providers, including Russian aviation giants Aeroflot and Transaero (limiting or banning flights) and railway giant First Freight Transportation Company (full ban of transportation in Ukraine). It also includes 10 Russian aerospace companies, including engine producer Salut, helicopter makers Helicopters of Russia and Kazan Helicopters, and fighter jet maker Ulan-Ude Plant (freezing of assets, ban on financial operations, ban on setting business contacts).

The sanction list also includes 36 banks and financial organizations, including Gazprombank, Bank of Moscow and “Putin’s pocket bank” Rossiya (freezing of assets, ban on lending and investments in any securities). Other sanctioned entities are three Russian TV channels, four Crimean ports, 15 civic organizations (including separatist battalions active in Donbas), one Russian food holding, four IT companies and two Ukrainian lottery operators.

The list of targeted individuals, published on the Presidential Administration website, consists of top Russian state officials such as Russian State Duma Federal Assembly Head Sergey Naryshkin, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu, presidential advisor Sergey Glazyev, and Chechen Republic Head Ramzan Kadyrov.

It also includes Ukrainian citizens who supported the Russian military aggression, particularly the leaders of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, as well as journalists, including those in Europe who have promoted the Russian narrative of events. 

Alexander Paraschiy, Zenon Zawada: The long-awaited list emerged more than a year after parliament approved a Law on Sanctions in August 2014. It’s clear that some lobbying occurred behind the scenes, given that Russia’s biggest state banks in Ukraine weren’t targeted, namely Sberbank, VTB Bank and Vneshekonombank. This lobbying could have come from Ukrainians as well, who have extensive business dealings with certain Russian enterprises. They will enjoy their “preferred status,” or immunity from sanctions, for as long as the Donbas armed conflict doesn’t escalate.

The large list of targeted transportation and financial organizations will definitely hurt business links between Ukraine and Russia, which will very likely introduce its counter-sanctions soon. The key Ukrainian victim of the introduced sanctions will be Ukrainian aerospace giant Motor Sich (MSCIH UK), whose main partners are on the list.