On December 22, the Council of the European Union decided to extend economic sanctions against Russia for another six months - until July 31, 2026.
Points of attention
- EU restrictions against the Russian Federation cover a wide range of measures: trade, finance, energy, technology, dual-use goods, industry, transport, and luxury goods.
- The EU is ready to continue to increase pressure on Russia, in particular by imposing additional sanctions.
The EU Council extended sanctions against Russia
Today, the Council of the EU extended the EU restrictive measures in view of the Russian Federation's ongoing actions destabilizing the situation in Ukraine for a further 6 months, until July 31, 2026.
As noted in Brussels, the restrictions cover a wide range of activities: trade, finance, energy, technology, dual-use goods, industry, transport, and luxury goods.
The sanctions also include a ban on the import or transfer by sea of crude oil and certain petroleum products from the Russian Federation to the European Union, the removal of a number of Russian banks from the SWIFT system, and the suspension of the activities and licenses in the EU of several Kremlin-supported disinformation media outlets.
In addition, specific measures enable the EU to counter the circumvention of sanctions.
As long as the illegal actions of the Russian Federation continue to violate fundamental norms of international law, it is appropriate to maintain all EU measures in force and take additional measures if necessary.
Brussels also emphasized that the EU is ready to continue to increase pressure on Russia, in particular by introducing additional sanctions.
