By Emily Keaveney
Before Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24th, 2022, the European Union decided to impose sanctions on Russia in support of Ukraine. Many people saw how Russia was preparing to invade Ukraine, and found the invasion unprovoked and unjust.
The European Union was quick to implement its sanctions, aiming to hurt Russia’s economy. The European Union also provided humanitarian, financial, and military support for Ukraine, as well as supporting refugees fleeing Ukraine. They also emphasized humanitarian laws that must be followed by Russia. (EU Response to Russia's Invasion of Ukraine, n.d.).
The European Union implemented three packages of sanctions. The first package issued sanctions on certain individuals working for the Russian State, Duma, which in other words, is the Russian Parliament. They also included restrictions on Russian access to the European Union’s capital as well as financial markets. (EU Response to Russia's Invasion of Ukraine, n.d.). The second sanction came five days after Russia invaded Ukraine. This sanction focused primarily on individual sanctions of Vladimir Putin and Sergey Lavrov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Russia. The EU also decided to sanction Russian National Security Council members. The EU also imposed a suspension of visa facilitation provisions for Russian politicians and businesses. (EU Response to Russia's Invasion of Ukraine, n.d.). The suspension of visa facilitation makes it harder for Russian people to apply for a visa application. The process to obtain a visa is longer, making it much more difficult to travel within European Union countries. This sanction limits the travel period for Russians to a maximum of three months after the first date of entry upon arrival. (Visa Facilitation Agreement, n.d.).
The third sanction came eight days after the invasion. This sanction was far more severe, as it did not allow Russian planes and aircraft to fly over EU airspace. It also prohibited transactions with the Russian Central Bank and implemented a SWIFT ban for seven Russian banks. SWIFT is a high-security transaction system that allows financial transactions all over the world. It is a safe way to make transactions and without SWIFT in financial transactions, Russia will have an extremely hard time operating globally. In the third sanction, the European Union also suspended broadcasting of Russia Today and Sputnik, which are state-controlled news outlets that create pro-Russia news for people outside of Russia. (RT and Sputnik: 5 Facts to Know, 2022).
Other countries have responded to the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by showing support for Ukraine. Canada sent up to 150 armed forces to Poland on a philanthropic mission to help Ukrainian refugees. Australia expanded sanctions on Russian endeavors and the United States has been providing military weapons to Ukraine. (Countries Supporting Ukraine and Russia, Complete List With Reasons, 2022).
Overall, many countries have been providing or showing support for Ukraine. Many countries fear getting too involved to the point where it could anger Russia, but most European countries are allowing Ukrainian refugees to seek refuge in their country due to the war.
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