On December 19, in response to the 12th package of EU sanctions, the Russian Federation expanded the list of representatives of EU states who are banned from entering the country
TASS-DOSSIER. December 19, 2023 Russia has expanded the list of representatives of EU countries who are banned from entering the country. The decision was made in response to the 12th package of EU sanctions. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, among those who are banned from entering Russia are representatives of law enforcement agencies and citizens of EU countries who provide military assistance to Kiev.
So far, Moscow has announced retaliatory sanctions against representatives of the European Union and European structures five times. The name lists of those who have fallen under retaliatory sanctions and information on the number of such persons are not published.
March 31, 2022 The Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russia is expanding the list of representatives of EU member states and European structures who are prohibited from entering the country. The restrictions apply to the top leadership of the European Union, including a number of European commissioners and heads of EU military structures, and the majority of MEPs promoting anti-Russian policies. High-ranking officials, including representatives of governments and parliaments of some EU countries, public figures and media workers, "who are personally responsible for promoting illegal anti-Russian sanctions, inciting Russophobic sentiments, and infringing on the rights and freedoms of the Russian-speaking population," were also included in the retaliatory Russian blacklist.
On September 7, 2022, the Russian Federation expanded sanctions against the European Union as a retaliatory measure. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, "the restrictions apply, in particular, to the top military leadership of the European Union, high-ranking employees of the law enforcement agencies of the EU member states, representatives of European commercial organizations in the field of arms production and military equipment involved in the supply of military products to Ukraine." The persons included in the sanctions list are prohibited from entering Russia, and the corresponding note verbale from the Russian Foreign Ministry was sent to the EU delegation.
October 25, 2022 In response to the unfriendly actions of the EU and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Moscow has expanded the list of representatives of EU member states who are banned from entering Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry explained that "we are talking, among others, about representatives of European commercial structures for the production of weapons and military equipment involved in the supply of their products to the Kiev regime." The restrictions also apply to individual PACE deputies. The decision was made after the European Union introduced new restrictive measures "aimed at curbing the development of the Russian Federation," as well as after PACE approved another anti-Russian resolution.
On January 17, 2023, in response to the 9th package of EU sanctions, the Russian Federation expanded the list of EU representatives who are banned from entering Russia. According to the statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry, it included the heads of law enforcement agencies of EU countries, heads of state and commercial structures that produce and supply weapons and military equipment to Kiev, as well as citizens of EU states "noticed in systematic public anti-Russian rhetoric." Restrictions are also applied to individual MEPs.
June 23, 2023 Russia has expanded the list of EU representatives who are banned from entering the Russian Federation. The Russian Foreign Ministry indicated that the decision was made in response to the 11th EU sanctions package adopted on June 23. The restrictions imposed by Moscow concern "representatives of law enforcement agencies, government and commercial organizations of EU countries, citizens of EU member states involved in providing military assistance to the neo-Nazi regime in Kiev, <...> representatives of European structures responsible for imposing sanctions against our country and trying to undermine Russia's relations with other states." EU parliamentarians who "promote a confrontational agenda with Russia" also fell under sanctions.