The European Union has adopted its 21st sanctions package against Russia, imposing its most extensive economic penalties in four years. The measures expand restrictions across the financial, military, cyber and energy sectors while introducing new enforcement tools and broader export controls.
The package tightens restrictions on the Moscow Exchange and blocks the A7 cross-border payment network. It also bans crypto services operating in third countries that help Moscow evade sanctions.
Beyond the financial sector, the EU has expanded export controls targeting Russia's military supply chain for long-range drones and added 51 entities to its export control list.
The sanctions package directly targets Russia's FSB 16th Centre, holding the intelligence unit responsible for cyber espionage and sabotage across EU member states.
The package also freezes the assets of 15 individuals and one entity linked to war crimes and the torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war.
The EU has set a new price cap of U.S.$44 per barrel on Russian oil for the next 12 months.
The original price cap, introduced in 2022, was U.S.$60 per barrel, while the global market price for crude oil is currently around U.S.$80 per barrel.
The bloc has also blacklisted additional tankers operating in Russia's "shadow fleet", targeting vessels used to transport Russian oil while evading international restrictions.
The package required unanimous approval from all EU member states, and the final agreement includes several exemptions.
Greece secured an exemption allowing its shipping fleet to transport Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) to non-EU countries.
Following pressure from Bulgaria, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church and the founder of Lukoil were removed from the blacklist.
Portugal and Germany blocked a proposed ban on Russian seafood imports.
Austria delayed sanctions against an investment firm linked to Raiffeisen Bank, which is currently exposed to more than €2 billion in losses in Russia.
The 21st sanctions package significantly strengthens restrictions on Russia's financial system, military supply chains, cyber operations and energy exports. At the same time, the exemptions illustrate the compromises made by member states to secure unanimous approval for the measures.
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Leaders from around the world are gathering in New York for the latest session of the United Nations General Assembly, with conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, global security, trade, artificial intelligence, climate change and economic development dominating the agenda.
Iran has called for a diplomatic solution after U.S. President Donald Trump rejected its Hormuz proposal, while Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran was awaiting a definitive U.S. response through mediators.
A Russian guided aerial bomb has struck an apartment building in Kharkiv, injuring 22 people, including children, according to the city’s mayor. The strike follows a day of near-continuous Russian attacks across Ukraine that killed at least five people.
British police have arrested five men on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act after a major security incident was declared near RAF Fairford, a British air base used by U.S. air forces in Gloucestershire, England.
Six people have died after a two-storey residential building in a tourist area of central Athens collapsed, the Greek fire brigade said on Saturday (26 September), following an explosion that the mayor said was likely linked to gas infrastructure.
A Russian guided aerial bomb has struck an apartment building in Kharkiv, injuring 22 people, including children, according to the city’s mayor. The strike follows a day of near-continuous Russian attacks across Ukraine that killed at least five people.
France’s far-right National Rally (RN) and its ally, the Union of the Right for the Republic (UDR), have won enough seats to form a group in the Senate for the first time, marking a breakthrough for the party ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Pope Leo has renewed his pledge to tackle abuse within the Catholic Church after privately meeting survivors of clergy abuse during his visit to France.
Swiss voters have overwhelmingly rejected stricter neutrality rules that would have limited the country’s ability to impose sanctions and cooperate with NATO, with more than 70 per cent voting against the proposal.
Pope Leo XIV joined an estimated 150,000 pilgrims for a traditional candlelight procession at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in southern France on Sunday (27 September), during the final evening of his visit to the Catholic pilgrimage site.
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