The EU adopted a new range of economic sanctions against Russia over its involvement in the ongoing crisis in eastern Ukraine.
EU ministers aim to increase the economic pressure on Moscow to stop it supplying arms to the pro-Russia rebels in eastern Ukraine by targeting Russia’s energy sector, limiting Russian banks’ access to capital, and freezing the assets of Russian officials and oligarchs.
Moscow denies that it has been supplying heavy weapons to the pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine, such as the surface-to-air MA-11 “Gadfly” missile system allegedly used to shoot down Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 on 17 July, killing all 298 people on board, mostly Dutch citizens.
The full list of sanctions are due to be published on Wednesday.
