The European Union on the 12th agreed to extend sanctions against Russia for another six months, targeting more than 2,500 individuals and entities including Russian President Putin.
According to a report by China News Service, the EU Council issued an announcement stating that these sanction measures will be extended until March 15, 2026.
The announcement shows that to date, the EU has imposed sanctions on more than 2,500 Russian individuals and entities, including freezing assets within the EU's jurisdiction, prohibiting individuals from entering the EU, and banning EU citizens and entities from providing funds to them.
The announcement stated that the EU is prepared to further increase pressure on Russia, including imposing additional sanctions.
After the escalation of the Ukraine crisis in February 2022, the EU has designated Russian officials and entities as sanction targets, and launched multiple rounds of economic sanctions against Russia, covering fields such as trade, finance, oil, technology and dual-use products, industry, transportation, and luxury goods.
In response to EU sanctions, Russia has implemented countermeasures such as restricting the import of EU agricultural products, and has repeatedly stressed that the EU's attempt to force Russia into a "strategic defeat" has not succeeded, condemning the EU's sanctions as "illegal extraterritorial restrictions, political blackmail, and acts of neo-colonialism."