EU approves 13th round of Russia sanctions ahead of war anniversary

The European Union agreed on Wednesday to a new round of sanctions on Russia ahead of the second anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Welcoming the decision, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on X, formerly Twitter, that the latest salvo of sanctions keeps "the pressure high on the Kremlin."

EU representatives in Brussels signed off on the package, which targets persons and organizations linked to the Russian government and the Russian invasion.

Almost 200 people have been included in the 13th package, top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said.

The package also includes measures to clamp down on sanctions evasion, he said.

The EU recently targeted companies based in China, Uzbekistan, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, for example, which are allegedly involved in circumventing the EU's punitive measures.

The latest measures go after the Russian weapons industry's access to components to manufacture drones, EU diplomats told dpa. Companies in the bloc would not be allowed to sell goods and technologies with military connections to Russia.

However this latest round of sanctions does not contain wide-ranging measures to impact whole economic sectors.

A previous round of EU sanctions included a prohibition on importing diamonds and jewellery from Russia.

A far-reaching ban on imports of crude oil, coal, steel, gold and luxury goods, as well as measures aimed at banks and financial institutions, has been in place for some time.

The sanctions agreement now goes to EU capitals for final legal approval. Persons and organizations will then be listed in the EU Official Journal to take effect on Saturday, the war's anniversary.