The Council of the European Union on 22 September 2026 extended individual restrictive measures targeting people and entities that Brussels holds responsible for undermining Ukraine’s territorial integrity. The sanctions will remain in force until 22 September 2029 — the first time they have been prolonged for 36 months rather than...
What France’s ultimatum over Usmanov means for EU policy
In mid-September 2026, the European Union came close to a serious breakdown in one of its main instruments of pressure on Russia. Personal sanctions against roughly 2,500–3,000 Russian individuals and companies, imposed after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, were due to be renewed on 15 September. Instead,...
France’s Foreign Ministry refuses to name partners seeking to lift sanctions on Usmanov
The French Foreign Ministry has declined to name the international partners pressing for Alisher Usmanov’s removal from the EU sanctions list and has not explained the “national security considerations” it cited earlier. Paris has confirmed that it supports taking the Russian-Uzbek billionaire Alisher Usmanov off the European Union’s sanctions list,...