EU agrees new sanctions on Russia, blacklisting companies in mainland China for the first time

The sanctions have a heavy focus on fighting circumvention and go after firms around the world accused of providing Russia with advanced technology and military goods manufactured in the EU, particularly drone components.

Companies from Turkey and North Korea, among other countries, have also been targeted. Nearly 200 people and entities, mostly from Russia, have been added to the blacklist, which now contains more than 2,000 names.

The package, however, does not cover any person allegedly involved in the death of Alexei Navalny, the most prominent critic of President Vladimir Putin. Tighter restrictions on aluminium were not included either, as the topic remains divisive.

Exact details of the sanctions will become available after publication in the EU's official journal, expected to happen later this week.

"We must keep degrading Putin's war machine," said Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission.

The bloc had previously attempted to punish a handful of firms based in mainland China, but complaints from Beijing officials and reservations from some member states prevented the move. The ever-closer ties between Russia and China eventually pushed diplomats in Brussels to give the idea a second try.

Russia-China trade reached a record high of more than $240 billion (€213 billion) in 2023, according to customs figures by the Chinese government. The figure easily surpasses the $200 billion objective set by the two countries.

The new raft of EU sanctions, the 13th package since February 2022, also targets Russian-operated institutions that re-educate children who have been kidnapped from Ukraine. The alleged abductions triggered an arrest warrant against President Vladimir Putin by the International Criminal Court,