Russian Embassy in Greece Says Bank Accounts of Citizens Frozen

The Russian Embassy in Greece said Wednesday it was “concerned” about reports it had received from Russian citizens in the country who said that their bank accounts have been frozen, “without any warning or written notification.”

“In some cases, families of Russian citizens are deprived of their only source of income,” the embassy said.

Greece began freezing assets of Russian citizens named on an international list for sanctions sent to all European Union countries in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in mid-March.

EU package of sanctions against Russia

The European Union started to impose sanctions on Russia on 23 February 2022 in response to Moscow’s decision to recognize the independence of the non-government-controlled areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.

The package included:

• sanctions against 351 members of the Russian State Duma who voted in favor of the recognition
• sanctions against an additional 27 individuals and entities
• restrictions on economic relations with the non-government controlled areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts
• restrictions on the ability of the Russian state and government to access the EU’s capital and financial markets and services

On 25 February 2022, the EU decided to freeze the assets of Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, and its foreign affairs minister, Sergey Lavrov, in response to the military aggression carried out by the Russian Federation against Ukraine.

In addition, the EU imposed restrictive measures on the members of the National Security Council of the Russian Federation and on the remaining members of the Russian State Duma who supported Russia’s recognition of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk ‘republics’.

On 28 February, the EU imposed an airspace ban on any aircraft operated by Russian air carriers and prohibited all transactions with the Russian Central Bank. It also imposed new sanctions on an additional 26 people and one entity.

On 15 March 2022, the EU decided to impose a fourth package of economic and individual sanctions in response to Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine. The new measures include a ban on:

• • all transactions with certain state-owned enterprises
  • the provision of credit rating services to any Russian person or entity
  • new investments in the Russian energy sector

The Council expanded the list of persons connected to Russia’s defense and industrial base, on whom tighter export restrictions are imposed regarding dual-use goods, goods and technology which might contribute to Russia’s technological enhancement of its defense and security sector. The EU also introduced:

• trade restrictions concerning iron, steel and luxury goods
• sanctions on an additional 15 individuals and 9 entities