The European Union has adopted its 20th package of sanctions against Russia, expanding restrictions on energy, finance, trade, military supply chains and maritime activity linked to Moscow’s war against Ukraine.
The European Union has adopted its 20th package of restrictive measures against Russia, widening the bloc’s sanctions regime across energy, financial services, crypto assets, trade, maritime transport and Russia’s military-industrial base.
The package, adopted by the Council of the EU on 23 April, includes 120 additional individual listings, described by the Council as the largest package of listings in two years. It forms part of the EU’s continuing response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and is intended to increase pressure on Moscow’s ability to finance and sustain the war.
According to the Council’s formal announcement, the new measures target several areas considered central to Russia’s war economy, including oil revenues, shipping networks, banking channels, crypto-based financial activity and companies involved in supplying military goods.
A significant part of the package focuses on Russia’s energy sector. The Council said the measures create the basis for a future maritime services ban on Russian crude oil and petroleum products, to be coordinated with G7 partners and the wider Price Cap Coalition.
The package also introduces 36 designations covering parts of the Russian energy sector, including oil exploration, extraction, refining and transportation. The EU says these measures are aimed at companies and entities that have recently expanded their share of export markets.
The shadow fleet remains a central focus. A further 46 vessels have been made subject to a port access ban and restrictions on services linked to maritime transport. This brings the total number of designated vessels to 632. The Council said the vessels are associated with efforts to circumvent the oil price cap mechanism, support Russia’s energy sector, move military equipment for Russia, or transport stolen Ukrainian grain.
Risk in European Waters: The Shadow Fleet, Sanctions Evasion and Safety Gaps
The EU has also introduced mandatory due diligence checks for the sale of tankers, intended to make it more difficult for Russia to expand its shadow fleet. The new package bans maintenance and related services for Russian liquefied natural gas tankers and ice-breakers. From January 2027, it will also be illegal to provide LNG terminal services to Russian entities, or entities owned or controlled by Russian nationals or operators.
The measures include transaction bans on two Russian ports, Murmansk and Tuapse, and on the oil terminal at the port of Karimun in Indonesia. The Council said these facilities are used to circumvent the oil price cap.
The financial element of the package includes a transaction ban on 20 Russian banks. Four financial institutions in third countries are also targeted for alleged involvement in sanctions circumvention or links to the Russian System for Transfer of Financial Messages, Russia’s alternative banking messaging network.
The EU is also expanding its sanctions into crypto-related activity. The package designates a Kyrgyz entity operating a platform where significant volumes of the government-backed stablecoin A7A5 are traded. It also introduces a sectoral ban on providers and platforms established in Russia that allow the transfer and exchange of crypto assets.
EU plans broader crypto restrictions alongside oil and banking measures against Russia
Further measures ban transactions in another cryptocurrency, RUBx, and prohibit EU support for the development of the digital rouble. Netting transactions with Russian agents are also forbidden as part of the EU’s effort to restrict circumvention mechanisms.
The sanctions also target Russia’s military-industrial complex. The EU has listed 58 companies and associated individuals involved in the development and manufacture of military goods, including drones. The package also designates 16 entities based in China, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Belarus, which the Council says have supplied dual-use goods or weapons systems to Russia’s military-industrial sector.
A further 60 entities will face tighter export restrictions on items that may contribute to Russia’s defence sector. Some are located outside Russia, including in China, Hong Kong, Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates.
For the first time, the EU is activating its anti-circumvention tool, prohibiting the export of computer numerical control machines and radios to Kyrgyzstan where there is considered to be a high risk of re-export to Russia. The Council said the decision followed analysis of trade data showing a significant increase in the re-export of high-priority items through Kyrgyzstan.
The trade measures also expand export bans to include laboratory glassware, high-performance lubricants, lubricant additives, energetic materials, chemicals, vulcanised rubber products, steel articles, metal-production tools and industrial tractors. These restrictions cover goods worth more than €360 million.
On the import side, the EU is restricting goods that it says generate significant revenues for Russia, including certain raw materials, metals, minerals, steel and metal scrap, chemicals, vulcanised rubber products and tanned fur skins. These measures cover goods worth more than €570 million and are accompanied by stronger restrictions on transit through Russian territory. A quota on ammonia imports is also being introduced.
The package includes further listings linked to the forced transfer and indoctrination of Ukrainian children, appropriation of Ukrainian cultural heritage, and propaganda activity. It also introduces stronger safeguards for EU companies facing intellectual property violations or expropriation in Russia linked to sanctions-related court rulings.
Belarus is covered under the same package. The Council added three listings connected to the Belarusian military-industrial complex and the Lukashenka regime. For the first time, a Chinese state-owned entity has been targeted under the Belarus sanctions regime over its role in producing Belarusian military goods. The EU has also extended the Belarus sanctions regime until 28 February 2027.
The legal acts underpinning the package have been published through the EU’s sanctions framework, including amendments to the bloc’s economic sanctions and individual listing regimes. The Council’s announcement links to the relevant decisions and regulations in the Official Journal of the European Union.
The latest package was adopted alongside the EU’s finalisation of a separate €90 billion support loan for Ukraine. Taken together, the measures show the bloc’s current approach: continued financial support for Kyiv, combined with broader attempts to restrict Russia’s access to revenue, technology, finance and maritime services.
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