The Council of the European Union has decided to extend the personal sanctions against individuals involved in undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine for another six months – until September 15, 2026.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Who the sanctions apply to and what restrictions have been imposed
The sanctions list currently includes about 2,600 individuals and entities. According to official information, five individuals who have passed away have been removed from the list, and it has been decided not to extend sanctions for two individuals. This includes Dutch oil trader Niels Troost and Maya Bolotova, the daughter of the head of Transneft.
The imposed sanctions include a ban on entry to EU countries for individuals, freezing of their assets, and a prohibition on providing any financial or economic resources to individuals and companies listed.
Attempts to remove certain individuals from the sanctions list
It was previously reported that Slovakia has intensified efforts to remove Russian businessman Alisher Usmanov and Russian-Israeli oligarch Mikhail Fridman from the sanctions list. Similar attempts were also noted during the previous review of sanctions in September 2025.
At the same time, Hungary is seeking the removal of oligarchs such as Dmitry Mazepin, Petr Aven, Musa Bajayev, and Albert Avdolyan from the list.
Since the onset of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the EU has significantly expanded the list of restrictions aimed at weakening Russia’s economic potential, depriving it of access to critical technologies and markets, and limiting its capabilities to conduct war.
“As stated in the text supported by 25 heads of state or government at the European Council meeting on December 18, 2025, the EU reaffirms its unwavering and steadfast support for the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine and will continue to provide political, financial, economic, humanitarian, military, and diplomatic support to Ukraine.”
The EU Council’s press release emphasizes that the European Union intends to continue supporting and increasing pressure on Russia to end the war and initiate substantive negotiations to achieve peace.