Japan announces new sanctions against Russia, condemns nuclear deployment in Belarus

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said on Friday that Japan will place additional sanctions on Russia after the G7 summit agreed to step up measures to punish Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, the Japan Times report.

Tokyo’s top government spokesperson also condemned Russia’s move to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, saying it would further escalate the situations around the invasion of Ukraine.

“As the only country to have suffered atomic bombings during wartime, Japan never accepts Russia’s nuclear menace, let alone its use,” Matsuno said during a news conference.

According to a Foreign Ministry statement issued on Friday, Japan will freeze the assets of 78 groups and 17 individuals in Russia, including army officers, and would prohibit exports to 80 Russian businesses such as military-affiliated research facilities.

Japan will also prohibit delivering construction and engineering services to Russia, however the specifics of the policy will be published later, according to a Trade Ministry statement.

• The EU has blocked more than EUR 200 billion in assets of Russia's central bank since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine