Timeline of the EU restrictive measures against Russia over Ukraine since 2014
Sanctions are preventive measures which allow the EU to respond swiftly to political challenges and developments that go against its objectives and values. For instance, sanctions can target:
terrorism
nuclear proliferation activities
human rights violations
annexation of foreign territory
deliberate destabilisation of a sovereign country
cyber-attacks
Diplomatic sanctions
Sanctions in a broad sense, or diplomatic sanctions, include actions such as the interruption of diplomatic relations with the targeted country, or the coordinated recall of diplomatic representatives of the EU and its member states.
Sanctions in a narrow sense
Sanctions in a narrow sense require a specific legal base in the EU Treaties and include:
arms embargoes
restrictions on admission of listed persons (travel ban): targeted persons cannot enter the EU, or travel beyond their member state of nationality if they are an EU citizen
freezing of assets belonging to listed persons or entities: all their assets in the EU are frozen, and EU persons and entities cannot make any funds available to those listed
economic sanctions or restrictions concerning specific sectors of economic activity, including import or export bans on certain goods, investment bans, prohibitions on supplying certain services, etc.
Under the UN or its own initiative
The EU can impose restrictive measures either on its own initiative or in order to implement UN Security Council resolutions.
UN sanctions
The EU implements all sanctions adopted by the UN Security Council and is involved in a permanent dialogue with the UN to better coordinate EU member states' respective actions on sanctions.
The EU has imposed a number of restrictive measures against Russia, including individual sanctions, economic sanctions and diplomatic measures.
Since March 2014, the EU has progressively imposed restrictive measures on Russia in response to:
The illegal annexation of Crimea
Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine
The illegal annexation of Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions
The measures are designed to weaken Russia's economic base, depriving it of critical technologies and markets and significantly curtailing its ability to wage war.
The EU has also adopted sanctions against:
Belarus, in response to its involvement in the invasion of Ukraine
Iran, in relation to the manufacture and supply of drones.
Timeline - EU restrictive measures against Russia over Ukraine
This timeline gives an overview of the EU restrictive measures imposed on Russia since 2014 in response to:
The illegal annexation of Crimea
Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine
The illegal annexation of Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.
2023
28 July 2023 Information manipulation in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
Restrictive measures against seven Russian individuals and five entities responsible for conducting a digital information manipulation campaign called 'RRN' (Recent Reliable News)
23 June 2023 Eleventh package of sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
The Council adopted new restrictive measures against Russia. The agreed package includes, amongst others, measures to:
strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation with third countries to impede sanctions’ circumvention
prohibit the transit of goods and technology via Russia
tighten export restrictions.
The EU has also imposed additional sanctions against 71 individuals and 33 entities.
13 April 2023 Wagner Group and RIA FAN added to the EU's sanctions list
EU restrictive measures now apply to 1,473 individuals and 207 entities. Those designated are subject to an asset freeze, and EU citizens and companies are forbidden from making funds available to them.
25 February 2023 Tenth package of sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
The agreed package includes bans on the following:
exports of critical technology and industrial goods
imports of asphalt and synthetic rubber
provision of gas storage capacity to Russians
transit through Russia of EU exported dual use goods and technology.
The EU has also:
suspended the broadcasting licenses of RT Arabic and Sputnik Arabic
restricted the possibility for Russian nationals to hold any position in the governing bodies of EU critical infrastructures and entities
introduced new reporting obligations to ensure the effectiveness of the asset freeze prohibitions
imposed additional sanctions against 87 individuals and 34 entities, including key decision-makers, military leaders, and military commanders, in 2022.
2022
December 2022 Ninth package of sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
The new measures include bans on:
exports of drone engines
exports of dual-use goods and technology
investments in the mining sector
transactions with the Russian Regional Development Bank
the provision of advertising, market research and public opinion polling services.
The EU has also suspended the broadcasting licenses of four additional Russian outlets and has sanctioned an additional 141 individuals and 49 entities.
6 October 2022 Eighth package of sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
New sanctions include:
a price cap related to the maritime transport of Russian oil for third countries
additions to the list of restricted items which may contribute to Russia's military and technological enhancement
additional restrictions on trade and services with Russia
an additional 30 individuals and 7 entities.
July 2022 Seven package “Maintenance and alignment” package of sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Package includes:
introduces a new prohibition to purchase, import or transfer Russian-origin gold, including jewellery
reinforces export controls of dual-use goods
extends the existing port access ban to locks
clarifies existing measures, for instance, in the fields of public procurement, aviation and justice
sanctions an additional 54 individuals and 10 entities, including the mayor of Moscow and Sberbank, a major financial institution.
21 April until 3 June 2022 Sixth package of sanctions
The package includes:
a ban on imports from Russia of crude oil and refined petroleum products, with limited exceptions
a SWIFT ban for an additional three Russian banks and one Belarusian bank
suspension of broadcasting in the EU for three more Russian state-owned outlets
The EU also adopted sanctions against an additional 65 individuals and 18 entities. These include individuals responsible for the atrocities committed in Bucha and Mariupol.
8 April 2022 Fifth package of sanctions
The package includes a ban on:
imports from Russia of coal and other solid fossil fuels
all Russian vessels from accessing EU ports
Russian and Belarusian road transport operators from entering the EU
imports of other goods such as wood, cement, seafood and liquor
exports to Russia of jet fuel and other goods
deposits to crypto-wallets.
The EU also adopted sanctions against 217 individuals and 18 entities. These include a full transaction ban on four key Russian banks, representing a 23% market share in the Russian banking sector.
15 March 2022 Fourth package of sanctions
The package includes a ban on:
all transactions with certain state-owned enterprises
the provision of credit rating services to any Russian person or entity
new investments in the Russian energy sector
trade restrictions for iron, steel and luxury goods
sanctions on an additional 15 individuals and 9 entities.
9 March 2022 EU imposes restrictive measures on an additional 160 individuals
The listed individuals include:
14 oligarchs and prominent businesspeople
146 members of the Russian Federation Council
Altogether, EU restrictive measures now apply to a total of 862 individuals and 53 entities.
EU agrees new measures targeting Belarus and Russia, measures will:
restrict the provision of specialised financial messaging services (SWIFT) to three Belarusian banks
prohibit transactions with the Central Bank of Belarus
prohibit the listing and provision of services in relation to shares of Belarusian state-owned entities on EU trading venues
significantly limit the financial inflows from Belarus to the EU
prohibit the provision of euro-denominated banknotes to Belarus.
28.02-02. March 2022 Third package of sanctions:
suspension of broadcasting of Russia Today and Sputnik
SWIFT ban for seven Russian banks. The EU has excluded seven Russian banks from SWIFT.
A ban on:
investing, participating or otherwise contributing to future projects co-financed by the Russian Direct Investment Fund
selling, supplying, transferring or exporting euro banknotes to Russia or to any natural or legal person or entity in Russia.
The new measures include:
a ban on transactions with the Russian Central Bank
€ 500 million support package to finance equipment and supplies to the Ukrainian armed forces
a ban on the overflight of EU airspace and on access to EU airports by Russian carriers
new sanctions on an additional 26 persons and one entity.
25 February 2022 Second package of sanctions in order to have economic measures to cover the finance, energy, transport and technology sectors, as well as visa policy.
23 February 2022 First package of sanctions against Russia
The agreed package includes:
targeted sanctions against the 351 members of the Russian State Duma and an additional 27 individuals
restrictions on economic relations with the non-government controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts
restrictions on Russia's access to the EU’s capital and financial markets and services.
2014-2021 extension in every 6 month
2021
EU restrictive measures regarding the territorial integrity of Ukraine now apply to a total of 185 persons and 48 entities. Those designated persons are subject to an asset freeze – including a prohibition on making funds available - and a travel ban, which prevents them from entering or transiting through the EU.
2014
November EU strengthens sanctions: This decision brought the total of persons subject to EU sanctions over Ukraine's territorial integrity to 132 and the number of entities under EU asset freeze to 28.
March: Introduction of a first set of restrictive measures against 21 Russian and Ukrainian officials.
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