EU to impose more restrictive measures against Russia

Brussels, July 30 (IANS) The European Union (EU) has agreed a package of "significant" additional restrictive measures targeting sectoral cooperation and exchanges with Russia, the European Council said in a statement Tuesday.

These decisions will limit access to EU capital markets for Russian state-owned financial institutions, impose an embargo on trade in arms, establish an export ban for dual-use goods for military end users, reported Xinhua citing the statement.

The decisions will also curtail Russian access to sensitive technologies particularly in the field of the oil sector.

The new package reinforces the recently expanded list of people and entities "undermining Ukrainian territorial integrity and sovereignty", it added.

It is meant as "a strong warning" and "a powerful signal" to Russia that "destabilising Ukraine or any other Eastern European neighbouring country will bring heavy costs to its economy".

The EU also emphasised that it remains ready to "reverse" its decisions, and reengage with Russia "when it starts contributing actively and without ambiguities to finding a solution to the Ukrainian crisis".