Moscow (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – In response to the European Union’s 18th package of sanctions against Russia, adopted on July 18, 2025, Russia has imposed entry bans on certain EU individuals as a retaliatory measure.
The Russian Foreign Ministry stated on Tuesday that it has “significantly” broadened the list of European officials barred from entering Russia, in response to the EU’s 17th and 18th sanctions packages.
“We are talking about employees of law enforcement agencies, state and commercial organizations, citizens of EU member states and a number of other Western States responsible for providing military aid to Kyiv, participating in the organisation of supplies of dual-use products to Ukraine,”
The ministry explained.
Russia repeated that the EU’s “anti-Russian” actions will
“receive a timely and adequate response.”
It also included representatives engaged in setting up a tribunal established last month by Kyiv and the Council of Europe, along with officials promoting the confiscation of Russian assets or using their proceeds to aid Kyiv.
“Anti-Russian hostile actions are not capable of exerting any influence on the policy of our country. Russia will continue to follow the course of defending its national interests and protecting the new fair world order,”
The ministry stated, cautioning that future EU restrictive measures would also receive a “timely and adequate” answer.
What are the goals of the EU’s 18th sanctions?
A few days ago, the European Union approved an 18th package of sanctions against Moscow over its fighting in Ukraine, including efforts aimed at dealing further squalls to the Russian oil and energy industry.
EU diplomats stated that the EU will implement a variable price cap on Russian crude oil, set at 15% below its average market price. This aims to replace the largely ineffective $60 cap that the G7 countries have attempted to enforce since December 2022. The package also includes a ban on transactions involving Russia’s Nord Stream gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea and dealings with Russia’s financial sector.
EU top diplomat stated that 105 ships in Russia’s “shadow fleet”—a term used by Western officials for ships Moscow employs to bypass oil sanctions—had been blacklisted. Additionally, Chinese banks that “enable sanctions evasion,” though not named, were also targeted.
How has Russia responded to past sanctions rounds?
In March, Russia’s Foreign Ministry also announced a substantial expansion of its entry ban on European officials, activists, and scientists, as a response to the EU’s 16th round of sanctions imposed on the third anniversary of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Brussels’ 16th sanctions round, approved in February, aimed at Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” used to bypass oil export limits, banks aiding sanctions evasion, media outlets broadcasting within the EU, and gaming consoles that could be repurposed for drone operations. The package additionally imposes restrictions on Russian aluminum imports.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry did not reveal the number or identities of those affected by its retaliatory travel ban, but stated it targets officials from EU member states’ security agencies, government bodies, and businesses involved in military support to Ukraine.
It also targeted EU figures engaged in prosecuting Russian officials, promoting the creation of a tribunal for Russia’s leadership, or backing efforts to seize Russian state assets for Ukraine’s benefit.
