European Union foreign ministers are expected to approve a new set of sanctions on November 16, targeting more than forty individuals and entities primarily from Russia. The most prominent figure on the proposed blacklist is Tatyana Kim, the chief executive of Wildberries, who is reportedly the wealthiest woman in Russia.
Kim, who was born in Grozny in 1975, founded Wildberries, a platform often described as the Russian equivalent of Amazon. She has an estimated net worth of approximately $8 billion. The sanctions proposal states that Wildberries serves as a supply network for the Russian military by facilitating the sale of military and dual-use goods. It also notes a strategic partnership between the company and VTB Bank, a state-owned entity already sanctioned by the bloc.
Wildberries gained international attention this summer after Ukraine began targeting its warehouses with drone strikes. Other high-profile individuals on the list include entrepreneur Aleksandr Chachava, who holds stakes in Yandex and Ozon, two major Russian technology and e-commerce firms. The EU claims these companies are helping to supply the Russian military with equipment and dual-use goods.
Billionaire Ruslan Baysarov is also included in the package. He holds a controlling stake in BTS-Gold, a significant gold-mining company that has previously been sanctioned by Brussels. Additionally, businessman Sergei Matviyenko is proposed for listing due to his shareholding in LLC Megalit-Okhta Group, one of Russia's largest real estate developers. The document describes the group as a major fiscal contributor to the Russian budget. Matviyenko is the son of Valentina Matviyenko, the chairwoman of the Federation Council, who has been under EU sanctions since 2014 for supporting the annexation of Crimea.
The new measures also target regional Russian banks and roughly twenty oil refineries. Several companies from China, the Seychelles, and the United Arab Emirates are being sanctioned for purchasing Russian oil or owning vessels that are part of Russia's shadow fleet of tankers used to evade Western restrictions on oil exports.
This latest batch is part of a new approach adopted in early autumn to add names to the blacklist on a monthly basis. The EU has sanctioned over 4,600 individuals and firms since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began nearly five years ago. On November 16, ministers will also add names to two separate lists targeting those responsible for cyberattacks and hybrid attacks against the bloc.
The cyber-blacklist proposal includes one entity, NoName057(16), described as a pro-Russian hacker group that emerged in March 2022. The group claims responsibility for attacks on government bodies, critical infrastructure, and private companies in Ukraine, the United States, and EU member states. It is noted for using denial-of-service attacks and issuing threats on the dark web or through Telegram channels.
The hybrid sanction proposal focuses on the Social Design Agency, a Moscow-based PR company, and several of its leaders. The EU states that SDA carries out large-scale information manipulation projects funded and supervised by the Russian Presidential Administration. The agency is accused of systematically manipulating media environments, spreading pro-Russian propaganda, and operating fake news campaigns using fabricated content and staged offline provocations in countries including Germany and France during the 2024 European Parliament elections.
Several Kremlin-friendly journalists are also targeted, including Irish citizen Chay Bowes, who works for RT International. The sanctions document accuses Bowes of involvement in information operations by the Foundation to Battle Injustice, an organization founded by the Wagner Group. It also cites his role in spreading anti-Western and anti-Ukraine disinformation at the UN Security Council.
EU diplomats are simultaneously working on sectoral sanctions, which will form the 22nd package of measures against the Kremlin. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told journalists on November 12 that the proposal will be presented to member states before the next EU summit on November 26 and 27. Anonymously speaking diplomats indicated that the new measures will likely include sanctions on the Russian banking sector, cryptocurrencies, and shadow fleet vessels. The European Commission is also updating visa guidelines to help member states bar Russian athletes, a move prompted by several nations refusing to host Russia at the ice hockey world championship.
