EU adopts new sanctions against Russia News
EU adopts new sanctions against Russia

[JURIST] The new Russian discount airline Dobrolet [official website] on Monday suspended all flights as a result of tightening EU sanctions against Dobrolet and Russia. The EU on Wednesday stated [Globe and Mail report] that the airline’s service from Moscow to Crimea “facilitates the integration of the illegally annexed Autonomous Republic of Crimea into the Russian Federation and undermines Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity.” The new set of economic sanctions against Russia, agreed on by the EU [RIA report] on Tuesday, are expected to cause more damage to the Russian economy than those imposed earlier this year, though economists and analysts expect Western economies to be impacted by them as well. The sanctions target [Reuters report] the country’s energy, banking and defense sectors and include a ban on the purchase or sale of new bonds, stocks or long-term debts from some Russian banks. The sanctions took effect Friday.

The ongoing conflict [BBC timeline] in Ukraine [JURIST news archive] has reinvigorated fears of Cold War Era politics and increased tensions between Russia and the West. In July the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OCHR) [official website] issued a report [JURIST report] documenting what it referred to as the “continuing deterioration of the human rights situation in eastern Ukraine and calling for greater care to prevent civilian casualties. Earlier that month Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] reported [JURIST report] mounting evidence of abductions and violence against activists, protestors and journalists in eastern Ukraine over the last three months. In June the OHCHR issued a report [JURIST report] on Ukraine that cites increasing evidence of abductions, detentions, torture and killings in the two eastern regions of the country where armed forces hold control. In May the Commission issued a report [JURIST report] covering the period from April 2 to May 6, which found alarming deterioration of human rights in the country. Earlier in May Pillay expressed grave concern [JURIST report] over the escalating unrest in Ukraine that has brought increasing destruction and death to the region. In April the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] opened an investigation [JURIST report] into alleged crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes in the Ukraine.