Russia’s ‘shadow vessels’ using false flags to skirt sanctions, report says
A new report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) reveals that Russia is increasingly using “shadow vessels” flying false flags to bypass international sanctions. In the first nine months of 2025, these tactics allowed the transport of millions of tonnes of oil undetected. Between January and September 2025, 113 Russian […]
Serbia’s only oil refinery faces shutdown due to US sanctions
Serbia’s only oil refinery, Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), faces an imminent shutdown due to US sanctions targeting its majority Russian ownership. This situation poses a significant threat to the country’s energy security. The sanctions, enforced by the US starting October 9, 2025, target Russia’s energy sector. NIS is 51% owned by Gazprom and Gazprom Neft, […]
EU sanctions against A7A5 and Payeer come into effect
The European Union is implementing strict sanctions against the Russian ruble-pegged stablecoin A7A5 and the payment service provider Payeer. These measures are a response to their involvement in Russia’s destabilization of Ukraine. The EU has explicitly prohibited all direct and indirect transactions involving A7A5. This is a stricter stance than previous US or UK actions. […]
US Fund Carlyle Eyes Assets of Sanctioned Russian Firm Lukoil
The American private equity giant Carlyle Group is evaluating the purchase of international assets belonging to the sanctioned Russian oil company Lukoil. Because Lukoil is under US sanctions due to the war in Ukraine, Carlyle plans to apply for a special license from the US government (specifically OFAC) to conduct due diligence and potentially finalize […]
UK Sanctions on Illicit Russian Cyber Networks
The UK, in coordination with allies in the United States and Australia, has announced new sanctions targeting Russian “bulletproof” hosting services that facilitate global cybercrime. The sanctions focus on Media Land, a major provider of online infrastructure used for ransomware and phishing, and its ringleader, Alexander Volosovik (aka Yalishanda). Volosovik has links to notorious cyber […]
Zelenskyy sanctions former business partner implicated in $100M corruption scandal
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy imposed sanctions on Tymur Mindich, his former business partner, according to a decree published Thursday. Mindich was implicated in a $100 million corruption scandal in Ukraine’s battered energy sector, where prosecutors alleged this week he masterminded a scheme manipulating contracts at Ukraine’s state nuclear energy company to extract kickbacks worth 10-15 […]
Hauser & Wirth charged with breaching UK’s Russia sanctions
According to The Art Newspaper, the UK gallery is being prosecuted for allegedly making available a work by George Condo to a person connected with Russia after the country’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. As first reported in The Times, Condo’s Escape from Humanity (2021) was allegedly made available to the collector, named in the […]
Russia sanctions 30 Japanese nationals
The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that it closed entry to 30 Japanese journalists and scholars in response to Tokyo’s sanction policy against Moscow. “As part of the response to the ongoing so-called sanctions actions of official Tokyo against our country, linked to a special military operation, it was decided to indefinitely ban 30 Japanese citizens […]
Hungary’s Orbán vows to ‘circumvent’ US sanctions on Russian oil titans
According to Politico, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said that Budapest was working on how to “circumvent” American sanctions on Russian oil and gas companies. U.S. President Donald Trump announced he was imposing “tremendous” new sanctions on Russia’s multinational Lukoil and its state-owned Rosneft, in the first such measures since he took office. While the […]
Russia’s Lukoil to Sell Overseas Assets After U.S. Sanctions
According to AFP, Russian oil giant Lukoil will sell its overseas assets, the company said, after it was hit with U.S. sanctions over the war in Ukraine. U.S. President Donald Trump last week slapped Russia with his first significant sanctions package, targeting two top oil companies, Lukoil and Rosneft, after saying he was frustrated that […]