Putin Signs Retaliatory Sanctions Decree Against Hostile States

On Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin signed a decree establishing sanctions for individuals and entities that display "hostile actions" against Russia.

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The measures will be taken in retaliation to "the unfriendly actions of the United States, foreign states and international organizations... which aimed at illegally depriving Russia, Russian citizens and Russian legal entities of property rights or restricting their property rights," and with the aim of "protecting the national interests of Russia," the decree states.

It prohibits fulfilling obligations with foreign individuals and entities under sanctions, concluding deals or carrying out transactions with them. Moreover, Russia will ban the export of raw materials and products from Russia to those it has sanctioned.

The decree does not provide any details of which individuals or entities may be affected by the measures. The Russian government was ordered to compile a list of individuals under sanctions within 10 days.

"The Finance Ministry and Russia’s Central Bank will have the right to give official clarifications on the application of this decree with the exception of the norms on financial operations which benefit the individuals under the Russian sanctions," TASS reported.

Putin's new measures come at a time when the European Union (EU) is studying the approval of a sixth package of sanctions against Russia, which is being prepared by the European Commission (EC) and is expected to be presented this week.

During a conference in Panamay City, Joseph Borell, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said that the new package of sanctions could include an embargo on buying Russian oil, although he admitted that European countries still maintain divided positions on this issue, as reported by Al-Awasat.