The United Kingdom announced on Thursday a new series of sanctions against 59 Russian and six Belarusian individuals and companies, due to the invasion of Ukraine.
Among the companies are the Russian diamond giant Alrosa and the private military services group Wagner.
Among the personalities are the founder of Tinkoff Bank, Oleg Tinkov; the head of the first Russian bank Sberbank, Guerman Gref; and Polina Kovaleva, daughter of the alleged mistress of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Last week, the British government had already extended its sanctions against Russia, reaching 935 individuals and 70 companies. It also imposed punitive tariffs on products such as vodka and a ban on exporting luxury goods.
In a statement, British Foreign Minister Liz Truss said that these sanctions, which raise the total tax to a thousand, “target key industries that support the illegal invasion of Russia” and include the Russian Railways and the defense company Kronshtadt, the main drone producer.
“These oligarchs, businessmen and hired thugs are complicit in the murder of innocent civilians and it is only fair that they pay the price,” Truss said.
The sanctions, which are in addition to previous sanctions imposed on Russian companies and billionaires because of their ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, seek to increase economic pressure on the Russian regime.
Since last week, British companies have not been able to export to Russia luxury products including cars, works of art and fashion, the Minister of International Trade said in a statement.
(With information from AFP and EFE)
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