EU adopts 21st sanctions package against Russia

On 23 July 2026 the European Union approved its 21st sanctions package targeting Russia. The measures add 218 new listings – 170 entities and 48 individuals – including 94 Russian banks. Key provisions focus on the shadow fleet, requiring vessels that support it to be listed, and expanding restrictions on LNG trade, oil price caps, and the sale of Russian LNG tankers. Additional bans cover two Russian ports, four airports, a Georgian refinery and several Russian and Belarusian refineries, while new sanctions hit oil traders such as UAE‑based Nexus Oil Trading and tighten controls on the Russian banking and crypto‑asset sectors.

The package builds on a sanctions regime the EU has maintained since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and dramatically expanded after the full‑scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Over the years, EU measures have grown to affect banks, manufacturers, shipping companies, insurers, technology firms and multinational corporations worldwide, requiring firms to conduct thorough due‑diligence and compliance checks on customers, suppliers and transactions linked to Russia.