• Russian ships banned from UK ports, following fresh wave of sanctions
• further UK individuals and entities are restricted from undertaking financial transactions with the Russian Central Bank
• Russia’s state-owned sovereign wealth fund and its chief executive have been sanctioned

Russian ships have been banned from UK ports, following a fresh raft of UK sanctions against Russia today.

The ban includes any vessels owned or operated by anyone connected to Russia and authorities will also gain new powers to detain Russian vessels.

Additional economic measures, introduced by the Foreign Secretary today, including against the Russian Central Bank and the state’s sovereign wealth fund, also mean the majority of Russia’s financial system is now covered by UK sanctions.

The new measures prohibit UK individuals and entities from providing financial services to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, as well as the Ministry of Finance and National Wealth Fund.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said:

We said Putin and those around him would pay the price for their unprovoked and illegal invasion of Ukraine, and we are being true to our word.

The ban on Russian ships from UK ports, and new economic sanctions against key Russian financial institutions including its central bank, in close coordination with our allies, will degrade Russia’s economy and help make sure Putin loses.

We stand with Ukraine, its people and its democracy, and will continue to support them diplomatically, economically, politically and defensively.

Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps said:

Putin and his allies must feel the full consequences of their vicious and illegal invasion of Ukraine.

That’s why from today, I’m instructing all UK ports to turn away any vessel that is flagged, registered, owned, or operated by Russia.

By banning Russian ships from our ports, we are further isolating Russia and crushing its economic capabilities, starving Putin’s war machine.

The UK has worked in close partnership with the United States and European Union on the sanctions introduced today to prevent the Russian Central Bank from using its foreign reserves in ways that allow it to lessen the financial impact.

In addition, Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, which accounts for 35% of the financial sector, has been prohibited from clearing sterling payments through the UK’s financial system. The UK has already sanctioned Russia’s second largest bank, VTB, as well as 8 other financial institutions.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund – the country’s sovereign wealth fund – and its chief executive, Kirill Dmitriev, have also been sanctioned today, with their assets frozen and a travel ban in place for Dmitriev. RDIF funds projects of strategic significance to Russia. This sanction will stop UK individuals or companies dealing with RDIF.

• New funding brings total UK support during current Ukraine crisis to £220 million, which includes £120 million of humanitarian aid
• PM announced fresh help during visit to Poland today
• New funding will help provide aid, including medical supplies, to Ukraine and wider region.

The UK is committing another £80 million in aid to Ukraine to save lives, protect vulnerable people inside the country and in the wider region and to tackle the growing humanitarian crisis.

The funding brings the total UK humanitarian aid package for Ukraine to £120 million after £40 million was announced last weekend to help aid agencies respond to the deteriorating situation, creating a lifeline for Ukrainians with access to basic necessities and medical supplies.

It takes the UK’s overall aid support for Ukraine during the current crisis to £220 million, after a £100 million economic package for Ukraine was announced earlier this month.

Violent and barbaric acts from the Russian military against civilians are creating an increasingly catastrophic environment, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee into neighbouring countries.

The Prime Minister said:

With every hour, the passionate desire of the people of Ukraine to defend their country has become more apparent and millions of people around the world have been stirred and moved by their courage.

The reality is that whatever happens in the coming days or weeks, the Ukrainian people have shown already that their spirit will not be broken, and they will not be subdued. We as the international community have a responsibility to do everything we can to help the Ukrainians.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said:

We have a moral duty to support Ukrainians affected by Putin’s unprovoked aggression. Britain is at the forefront of efforts to supply life-saving humanitarian aid, as well as political, economic and defensive support.

Our message to the Ukrainian people is simple: we will help you and stand with you in the fight for the freedom and sovereignty of Ukraine.

The £220 million referenced by the PM is made up of £120 million of humanitarian aid and the £100 million of Official Development Assistance funding announced earlier this month to bolster the Ukrainian economy and reduce Ukraine’s reliance on Russian gas imports.

This latest round of support comes as the Red Cross Movement launched appeals for global support to deal with the unfolding humanitarian emergency that could see up to 7 million people displaced as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The United Nations has also launched a Ukraine appeal today, with the Foreign Secretary in Geneva meeting with the UN’s Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, and High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi.

• First tranche of sanctions implemented against Belarus for its role supporting Russia’s military invasion.
• Belarusian Chief of the General Staff and three other deputy defence ministers sanctioned.
• Two military enterprises sanctioned.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has today (Tuesday 1 March) launched a first tranche of sanctions against Belarusian individuals and organisations in response to the role the country is playing in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including facilitating the invasion from within its borders.

Four senior defence officials and two military enterprises have been sanctioned with immediate effect under the UK’s Russia sanctions regime.

Those sanctioned include the Belarus Chief of the General Staff and First Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Victor Gulevich. Gulevich is responsible for directing the actions of the Belarusian armed forces, which have supported and enabled the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He has directed joint military exercises with Russia, and consented to the deployment of Russian troops along the border of Belarus with Ukraine, which has directly contributed to Russia’s ability to attack Ukraine, including from positions in Belarus.

The other sanctioned individuals are Major General Andrei Burdyko, Deputy Minister of Defence for Logistics and Chief of Logistics of the Belarusian Armed Forces; Deputy Minister of Defence for Armament and Chief of Armament of the Belarusian Armed Forces, Major General Sergei Simonenko; and Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Andrey Zhuk.

Also sanctioned are state enterprises JSC 558 Aircraft Repair Plant and JSC Integral, a military semi-conductor manufacturer. JSC 558 provides maintenance and servicing to military aircraft at Baranovichi air base, from which Russian aircraft operated as part of the invasion.

Individuals will be unable to travel to the UK and any UK-based assets will be frozen.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said:

We are inflicting economic pain on Putin and those closest to him. We will not rest until Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is restored.

The Lukashenko regime actively aids and abets Russia’s illegal invasion and will be made to feel the economic consequences for its support for Putin.

There will be nowhere to hide. Nothing – and no one – is off the table.

These sanctions follow two pieces of legislation laid by the Foreign Secretary yesterday (Monday 28 February) to prevent designated Russian banks from being able to transact any payments in sterling and have correspondent banking relationships with UK-based banks, and to ban a range of exports critical to the maintenance and development of Russia’s military-industrial complex and strategic interests.

The first will be used immediately to designate Russia’s biggest bank, Sberbank, in effect cutting the bank out of the UK’s financial markets. The second, which is being enacted in close alignment with the US, EU and other partners, will collectively cut off much of Russia’s high-tech imports, constraining Russia’s military-industrial and technological capabilities for years to come.

ENDS

1. The individuals and entities have been designated under the UK’s Russia sanctions regime for their role in destabilising Ukraine and undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.
2. The UK has already imposed sanctions on more than 100 people and organisations in response to the fraudulent elections in Belarus and the litany of abhorrent acts and human rights violations that the Lukashenko regime continues to commit.

• Speaking with Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko, Rishi Sunak described the fortitude shown by the Ukrainian government and the Ukrainian people as “truly inspiring”.

• Sunak also confirmed that the UK stands ready to explore all avenues of support and will engage in strong G7 coordination on sanctions implementation.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak presses Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors from the Group of Seven (G7) to go “faster and further” in support of Ukraine and for a coordinated approach on sanctions implementation as the UK and its allies reduce their economic dependence on Russia.

Speaking during a virtual meeting under the German G7 Presidency earlier today (Tuesday), Chancellor Rishi Sunak emphasised the importance of G7 unity as the UK continues to work with its allies to monitor the economic impact of the conflict and stand in solidarity with the Ukrainian people.

This follows the UK’s announcement yesterday (Monday), along with G7 partners, to impose new financial sanctions on the Central Bank of Russia, the Russian National Wealth Fund, and the Ministry of Finance. Speaking directly to the Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko during the meeting, Rishi Sunak described the fortitude shown by the Ukrainian people as “truly inspiring” and reiterated;

We must do what we can to protect the fundamental freedoms of Ukraine and its people.

We will continue to work in lockstep with our allies to cut Russia off from the global economy and financial system in the name of democracy and freedom.

The Chancellor also reiterated the support provided so far by the UK Government, including a total of £220m of humanitarian support for Ukraine and a guarantee of up to $500m of Multilateral Development Banks lending for Ukraine, and stressed that the UK stands ready to go further if needed. This includes our authorities and agencies working closely together through a newly established multilateral taskforce to ensure our financial sanctions have maximum effect, including doing more to ensure full and effective targeting of Kremlin-connected elites, their families, and their enablers.

The UK’s announcements with allies over the weekend, notably the sanctions on the Russian Central Bank and the commitment to remove sanctioned Russian financial institutions from the SWIFT financial system already had a strong impact on Russia, as evidenced by market reactions. We will continue working in lockstep with our allies and have had constructive discussions on the detail of the SWIFT measure to see further action on this. As the meeting concluded, the Group agreed to continue monitoring impact of the conflict and closely coordinating its responses in all areas, especially sanctions implementation. The Chancellor emphasised that the UK stood ready to take further action.

G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors also reiterated their commitment to supporting Ukraine financially, building on the $48 billion provided by international partners in financial support to Ukraine between 2014 and 2021. This will continue in 2022 as the G7 stands united by Ukraine’s side.

Further information

• Read the UK Statement’s on Further Economic Sanctions Targeted at the Central Bank of the Russian Federation here

• This announcement effectively cuts the central bank of Russia out of the global banking system, meaning they can no longer deploy their foreign reserves to support the Rouble and will make it significantly more difficult to attempt to undermine the impact of our sanctions.

• SWIFT is a crucial part of the global payments network. It is used by more than 11,000 banks and institutions to facilitate trillions of pounds worth of transactions for individuals and businesses, with half of all high-value international payments passing through, alerting banks when they are going to occur.

• The government will cooperate with G7 partners in a newly established transatlantic taskforce to ensure full implementation of sanctions measures taken in response to the Ukraine crisis. This will include sharing best practice and operational cooperation to identify and pursue Russian-linked illicit finance

• Find pictures of the G7 meeting here