EU adds Russian billionaires, F1 driver to sanctions list

By Ata Ufuk Seker

BRUSSELS (AA) - The EU on Wednesday added 14 Russian oligarchs to its sanctions list, with billionaires, lawmakers, and a Formula One driver among them, in the latest measures against the war in Ukraine.

The new sanctions list included billionaires Andrey Melnichenko, active in coal and fertilizer fields, fertilizer producer Andrei Guriev, steel pipe producer Dmitry Pumpians, and agro-industrialist Vadim Moshkovich.

Alexander Vinokurov, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's son-in-law and businessman, Dmitry Arkadievich Mazepin, who operates in the chemical industry, and his son, Formula One driver Nikita Mazepin, and Mikhail Poluboyarinov, CEO of Russia's largest airline company Aeroflot, were also added to the sanctions list.

Named on the list were also 146 members of the Russian Federal Council.

Their assets were frozen and a travel ban was imposed.

In addition, the direct or indirect sale, supply, transfer, or export of maritime navigation and radio communications technology to Russia is prohibited.

As of March 20, Belarusian Development Bank, Belagroprombank, Bank Dabrabyt, and their subsidiaries were banned from the international money transfer system SWIFT.

Transactions with the Central Bank of Belarus for the management of reserves and assets were banned, while the provision of financial services to Belarusian public institutions was prohibited.

Belarusian nationals are also prohibited from depositing more than €100,000 ($110,731) in EU banks and the supply of euro notes to Belarus.

*Writing by Gokhan Ergocun in Istanbul