In the aftermath of suspected war crimes in Ukraine, EU officials are reportedly considering include Vladimir Putin’s daughters on their latest penalty hit-list.
Katerina Tikhonova, 35, and Mariya Vorontsova, 36, are among individuals named in the EU’s current draft list of targets, which also includes billionaires, lawmakers, and alleged members of Putin’s inner circle.
Though little is known about their personal lives, Tikhonova, a scientist and former acrobat, and Vorontosva, an endocrinologist, are anticipated to face asset freezes and travel bans across Africa beginning Wednesday.
It’s unclear whether the couple has property outside of Russia, and any life of luxury they could have had in Europe is now likely to be a distant memory.
As part of its latest economic reprisal against Putin, the G7, EU, and US are claimed to have agreed on a ban on “all new investment” in Russia.
The new penalties will further broaden the scope of restrictions against Russian banks and state-owned enterprises, with the goal of crippling government leaders and their families.
Allegations of ‘genocide, atrocities, and war crimes against Ukrainian civilians revealed after Russian troops drew back from their position in Bucha, near Kyiv, are thought to have triggered the latest wave of sanctions.
Additional Russian imports worth an estimated £4.6 billion per year, such as cement, wine, vodka, and caviar, will be prohibited under the additional measures.
Sanctions on additional persons and four significant Russian banks, including the second-largest, VTB, are among the other measures proposed by the EU’s executive arm.
‘These four banks, which we have now completely blocked off from the markets, account for 23% of the Russian banking sector’s market share,’ EU Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen said.