10 New Restrictive Measures under the EU's 21st Russia Sanctions Package

Amir Fadavi · 2026-07-23

EU Just Adopted Its 21st Sanctions Package Against Russia

While the details of the Decisions that adopted the 21st package are yet to be published in the EU Official Journal, here are some of the new restrictions based on the official press release of the Council of the EU:

  1. Several asset freezes and a prohibition to make funds available, including against 94 banks and major financial institutions;

  2. Transaction ban on 33 additional Russian credit and financial institutions, a Kyrgyz bank connected with the SPFS (System for Transfer of Financial Messages), and three other non-Russian banks for circumventing sanctions;

  3. Transaction ban on 14 crypto-related service platforms based in Georgia, Panama, the UAE, the Marshall Islands, Kyrgyzstan, and Belarus;

  4. Introducing the possibility of a full third-country ban for crypto-asset services, as a strong deterrent to countries hosting platforms that help Russia evade EU sanctions;

  5. Listing 41 more vessels;

  6. Paused the automatic adjustment of the oil price cap mechanism until 15 July 2027;

  7. Introducing a notification obligation for the sales of LNG tankers and a possibility to introduce new restrictions on the sale of LNG tankers to Russian citizens and companies, and introducing other contractual obligations to mitigate the risk of reselling to Russia or for use in Russia;

  8. Expanded the export ban to include items such as nickel powders; metals and alloys used in corrosion-resistant coatings in jet engines; beryllium powders used in propellants and in high-performance alloys; self-adhesive films, tapes and strips used in the aerospace and defence sectors; aviation items specific to unmanned aerial vehicles;

  9. Expanded the import ban to include additional items that generate significant revenues for Russia (worth over €60 million), such as copper ores, nickel ores, lead ores, precious-metal ores, unwrought zinc, alkaline-earth metals, zinc oxides, chromium oxides, glassware, imitation pearls and car parts;

  10. A new mechanism strengthening the legal protection for EU operators in litigations stemming from EU restrictive measures by allowing EU courts and member states not to recognise or enforce any court decision that was obtained in legal proceedings lodged in Russian courts.

This post will be updated when the EU Official Journal is published.