In an escalating response to what Russia has termed as the UK’s “confrontational policies,” 18 British nationals – encompassing government officials and scholars – have been sanctioned by the Russian authorities. The details as to which policies the sanctions are a response to were, however, not explicitly stated in the official announcement.
Among the targeted UK residents, half hold public offices, including members of the House of Lords and military officials. Unusually, the sanctions also extend into the academic sphere; with Russian scholars who hold British citizenship affected. The Russian foreign ministry claims these sanctions are necessitated by the substantial contributions of Western educational institutions to the UK’s “confrontational policy” against Russia.
On the same day, Giles Thomson, the director of OSFI (Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation), issued an explanatory statement outlining the new reporting obligations that were introduced in December 2023. Under these new measures, firms are now required to inform OSFI of any funds or economic resources held for the Central Bank of Russia, Russian Ministry of Finance or Russian National Wealth Fund. Furthermore, individuals under the Russia financial sanctions regime are required to disclose details of their UK assets to OSFI. Non-compliance with these reporting obligations could result in a civil monetary penalty.
In a move decrying what it deemed as acts of aggression, the UK government had implemented its seventh package of trade sanctions against Russia in December 2023, which included export bans on certain machine parts and electronics with potential military applications, and an import ban on Russian metals. Financial support was also rendered to businesses seeking to divest from Russia. The UK government estimated the new sanctions to cover 70 million pounds of exports and 67 million pounds of imports, on top of the preceding 662 million pounds of exports already sanctioned.
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