PRESS RELEASE : The sanctions plan against the Russian Federation is 70% implemented, the pressure on the aggressor must increase and Russia must be designated a terrorist state – Andriy Yermak [September 2022]

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 8 September 2022.

Another meeting of the International Expert Group on Sanctions against Russia chaired by Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak and Former US National Security Adviser, Ambassador Michael McFaul was held, traditionally in the format of a video conference.

Andriy Yermak thanked the members of the group for the productive work that has been ongoing for five months already and congratulated them on achieving a significant result – 70% implementation of the Action Plan presented in April this year.

“Thank you very much for all the efforts you have made since the beginning of our work in March. This is simply incredible, and is highly appreciated by our President and the entire Ukrainian people. I am sure that you can all be proud of the results of the work of our sanctions group,” he emphasized.

The Head of the Office of the President offered the members of the Yermak-McFaul group new ideas for discussion. First of all, a document on designating Russia a state sponsor of terrorism. He emphasized that this is not an easy process, but it should not be stopped, because Russia is a terrorist state, and the Ukrainian people demand this.

Another important issue, as noted by Andriy Yermak, is the ban on obtaining visas for Russian citizens. He noted that the European Commission has already proposed to suspend the visa facilitation agreement with the Russian Federation, but it is necessary to achieve more and prepare appropriate proposals.

“Russians, these savages, have no right to be among the civilized people of the West at all. Can you imagine that Russian women were calling their husbands and telling them to kill and rape Ukrainians? These are real conversations intercepted by our intelligence. And then the same Russian “women” simply come to Europe to have a rest on the beaches and go to museums. This is absolutely inappropriate,” the Head of the President’s Office is convinced.

Andriy Yermak drew attention to the fact that Ukraine is actively carrying out internal work on sanctions against the Russian Federation. In particular, these days, sanctions were applied to more than 600 people who belong to the ruling elite of Russia. An Inter-Agency Working Group on the Implementation of the State Sanctions Policy was established.

The Head of the President’s Office also offered to continue the successful practice of communication between the members of the International Expert Group on Sanctions against Russia and the parliamentarians of various countries.

The members of the group noted the progress in the work with documents and emphasized that the sanction pressure on Russia should only increase.

They discussed the need to introduce sanctions in the field of nuclear energy, to refuse to import uranium from Russia. The parties also touched upon the systematic, step-by-step implementation of the price cap on Russian oil, which will significantly reduce budget revenues of the Russian Federation and affect its oil production industry.