European Commission exerts efforts to prevent Russia from circumventing sanctions

The European Commission spokesperson Daniel Sheridan Ferrie says that the commission is closely monitoring that third countries do not circumvent EU sanctions against Russia.

“We do not stop our efforts to prevent the export (to Russia) of ammunition or goods entering the places of hostilities. We are working diligently to ensure that our sanctions cannot be circumvented by third countries. We see that some products can go to a third country and then end up in Russia and then on the battlefield in Ukraine. That’s why we are working around the clock to ensure that these goods, the so-called battlefield goods, are not re-exported to Russia through third countries,” he said.

Ferrie also mentioned the efforts of EU Special Envoy for Sanctions David Sullivan, who visits these countries.

“We have seen some positive signs in some of these third countries. But the circumvention of our sanctions is something that is happening, so we are working around the clock to eliminate it. The representative of the European Commission stated that part of the sanctions specifically target the Russian military-industrial sector in an effort to reduce their military capabilities in Ukraine,”  Daniel Ferrie added.

Ferrie emphasized that the EU's sanctions on Russia are primarily intended to weaken its military power and influence money that finance the conflict in Ukraine.

“That’s why we have adopted quite a few different packages of sanctions, including an export ban, and different ways in which we can reduce Russia’s ability to access technology and reduce its military capabilities,” the representative of the European Commission added.

The European Commission representative said that there are confirmed facts of sanctions circumvention, and they are “working around the clock to avoid this.”

The European Union imposed twelve sanction packages on Russia in 2022–2023 in response to Putin’s illegal war against Ukraine.

According to several reports and journalistic investigations, Russia has so far been able to find methods to bypass sanctions, including trade routes via third nations including China, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Georgia.

The 12th package of EU sanctions aims at blocking all sanctions evasion schemes and introduces sanctions against Russia’s diamond production. Nevertheless, Brussels will need to ensure that the sanctions are implemented and prevent potential evasion schemes, with a special focus on the countries that were caught helping Moscow circumvent trade restrictions.