The Council of the European Union (EU) today announced restrictive measures against two individuals and four companies for circumventing the sanctions imposed by the 27 against Russia and supporting the Russian Government.
One of those listed is Dmitry Beloglazov and his company LLC Titul. According to the EU Council, Beloglazov is responsible for creating a complex evasion scheme, together with Oleg Deripaska, which is already subject to restrictive EU measures.
In a statement, the Board states that the company LLC Titul created a subsidiary, Joint Stock Company Ilidais, to acquire Oleg Deripaska’s stake in International LLC Rasperia Trading Limited.
Rasperia holds 28.5 million euros worth of shares in another European company, STRABAG SE, whose assets were frozen as a result of EU restrictive measures following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Through this mechanism, Deripaska was able to sell his frozen Rasperia assets. In light of this evasion scheme, JSC Iliadis and Rasperia were also sanctioned by the Board.
The new listings announced today also include PJSC TransContainer, Russia’s largest rail container operator, and its general director, Mikhail Kontserev.
The carrier’s revenues increased throughout 2023 also thanks to the flow of Belarusian cargo and the company’s participation in illegal arms trade schemes with North Korea, in support of the Russian government, according to the EU.
Those appointed today are subject to an asset freeze and EU citizens and companies are prohibited from making funds available to them. Individuals are still subject to a travel ban and prevented from entering or transiting through EU territories.
In total, the European bloc’s restrictive measures regarding actions that compromise or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine now apply to more than 2,200 individuals and entities.
Earlier this week, the Council adopted the 14th package of economic and individual restrictive measures aimed at high-value sectors of the Russian economy, seeking to make it difficult for EU sanctions to be circumvented. In addition, 116 individuals and entities were added to the list of those responsible for actions that undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.
In its conclusions from this Thursday’s summit, recalls the EU, the European Council “reaffirmed the European Union’s continued support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders and the unwavering commitment of the EU to provide continued political, financial, economic, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support to Ukraine and its people for as long as necessary and with the necessary intensity”.
The European Union “remains ready to further limit Russia’s ability to wage war and urges all countries not to provide any material or other support to Russia’s war of aggression.”
