Following President Vladimir Putin’s official annexation of four areas of Ukraine, Canada imposed fresh sanctions on Russian elites and officials on Friday.
Canadian sanctions now apply to 43 Russian billionaires, members of the financial elite, and their families, as well as 35 top officials in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia who get support from Russia.
Following Putin’s signature on the paperwork during a ceremony at the Kremlin earlier in the day, Russia illegitimately seized the four areas.
Voting was place in the four occupied territories from September 23 to 27, leading to the annexation. Pro-Moscow sources asserted on Tuesday that 93 percent of votes cast in the Zaporizhzhia region, 87 percent in Kherson, 98 percent in the Luhansk region, and 99 percent in Donetsk approved annexation. Many Western politicians criticised the voting’s authenticity.
Ottawa said in a news release on Friday that “these people and entities are participating in President Putin’s desperate attempt to undermine the principles of state sovereignty, and share responsibility for the continued tragic murder throughout Ukraine.”
“Building on similar prohibitions already imposed by Canada on the territories of Donetsk and Luhansk, some economic activities in or with the Russian seized portions of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, including investing and exporting, are hereby restricted. ”
The West has vehemently denounced Putin’s declaration of Russian sovereignty over 15% of Ukraine, the largest annexation in Europe since the Second World War.
As Putin made the formal statement, Russian soldiers were experiencing one of their worst-ever defeats on the battlefield.
Russian troops were about to be encircled in Lyman, their main outpost in the north of Donetsk province, according to pro-Russian authorities. Losing there might allow Ukraine to retake large portions of the region that Putin has now proclaimed to be a part of Russia.
The week before, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau predicted “stronger sanctions” in response to Moscow’s action.
Ottawa declared that Putin’s annexation had “no legality” in a news release on Friday.
According to the federal government, “His gross violations of international law are predicated on the imperial assumption that his administration can redraw the map as it pleases.”
“President Putin’s victory through political theatre is being formalised with the Federal Assembly of Russia’s vote to incorporate the regions of Ukraine. This fraudulent process won’t change Canada’s stance. Borderlines won’t change. Ukraine will retain ownership of its area.
On Friday, further penalties were imposed against Russia by Canada’s allies.
Sanctions were imposed by the United States on 278 members of Russia’s legislature, 14 members of the military-industrial complex in Russia, two leaders of the nation’s central bank, and family members of top officials “for enabling Russia’s sham referenda and attempt to annex sovereign Ukrainian territory.”
Elvira Nabiullina, the governor of the Russian central bank, was subject to sanctions from the UK that included an asset freeze and a travel ban.
Additionally, Britain implemented fresh export restrictions on goods and services aimed at “sensitive sections of the Russian economy.”
Following Russia’s annexation, Ukraine declared that it will formally apply to join NATO, the military alliance that has provided Kyiv with weapons throughout the seven-month conflict.
Canada has imposed sanctions on 1,400 more people and organisations from and in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus since the invasion began on February 24.
Since Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in 2014, Ottawa had previously placed sanctions on more than 1,800 people and businesses. — with material from Reuters.
After Putin annexed regions of Ukraine, Canada imposed further sanctions on Russia.
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