UK announces major sanctions in support of Ukraine
Source: gov.uk (2025-05-19)

As President Putin ruthlessly intensifies his strikes against innocent Ukrainians, the UK is ramping up pressure with raft of 100 new sanctions.

UK announces wide-ranging sanctions on Russia as Putin launches his biggest ever drone attack against Ukraine

100 sanctions targets across Russian military, energy, financial sectors and those conducting Putin’s information war against Ukraine

UK and partners are also working to tighten the Oil Price Cap, further restricting critical oil revenues for Putin’s war machine

As President Putin ruthlessly intensifies his strikes against innocent Ukrainians, the UK is ramping up pressure with raft of 100 new sanctions.

The latest sanctions targets include entities supporting Russia’s military machine, energy exports and information war, as well as financial institutions helping to fund Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

On Saturday, Russia fired 273 drones at Ukrainian cities, the biggest drone onslaught of the war. A strike on a bus in Sumy killed 9 civilians.

Putin has so far not put in place the full, unconditional ceasefire that President Trump has called for, and which President Zelenskyy endorsed over 2 months ago.

The UK’s latest sanctions action comes as the EU prepares to announce its 17th package of sanctions against Russia, in a co-ordinated effort to secure a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.

Today’s measures sanction the supply chains of deadly Russian weapons systems, including Iskander missiles. This will protect Ukrainian lives, and our collective security by disrupting Russia’s military machine.

Putin has repeatedly fired Iskander missiles into crowded civilian areas with a callous disregard for life. He used these weapons during the strike against Sumy on 13 April that killed 34 civilians including children, some of them heading for Palm Sunday services.

UK and other Western sanctions are having a severe effect on Russia’s economy. Russian GDP shrank in the first quarter of the year and the non-defence economy has been in recession for some time. Security and defence spending is now over 40% of the federal budget, and Putin has had to raise taxes and slash social spending in order to continue the war.

Every rouble by which we cut Kremlin revenues diminishes Putin’s ability to sow chaos, division and disorder across the world and protects the British people, increasing security and prosperity at home.

As the Prime Minister set out at the European Political Community summit on Friday, people in Ukraine and across the world have paid the price for Putin’s aggression and now he must pay the price for avoiding peace.

Foreign Secretary, David Lammy said:

Putin’s latest strikes once again show his true colours as a warmonger.

We urge him to agree a full, unconditional ceasefire right away so there can be talks on a just and lasting peace.

We have been clear that delaying peace efforts will only redouble our resolve to help Ukraine to defend itself and use our sanctions to restrict Putin’s war machine.

Today’s sanctions also target 14 more members of the Social Design Agency (SDA), which carries out Kremlin-funded information operations that are designed to undermine sovereignty, democracy, and the rule of law in Ukraine and across the world.

The UK previously sanctioned the SDA and several of its leaders in 2024. We are now targeting all levels of the organisation.

In addition, today’s measures will strike at the heart of Putin’s efforts to get around our sanctions and help block his failing attempts to reconnect to the international economy.

Today’s action targets 46 financial institutions that help Russian attempts to evade sanctions, as well as the St Petersburg Currency Exchange, and the Russian Deposit Insurance Agency which insures Russian banks. These new sanctions will further isolate the Russian economy and disrupt Russia’s revenue streams.

Finally, the UK will also sanction 18 more ships in the ‘shadow fleet’ carrying Russians oil, along with the fleet’s enablers. The Prime Minister announced 110 shadow fleet related sanctions ahead of his visit to Kyiv earlier this month.

Today’s targets include John Michael Ormerod, a British national who procured ships for Russia’s shadow fleet, and 2 Russian captains of shadow fleet tankers. This action imposes a personal cost on those who are supporting Russia’s trade in oil and is another step in the Foreign Secretary’s personal mission to constrain the Kremlin and a crucial part of the Plan for Change to ensure a secure Britain.

The UK is also working with partners to tighten the Oil Price Cap that limits the price that Russia can charge for its oil if transported using G7 services like insurance and shipping. We are reviewing the $60 crude price level, with a view to lowering the cap closer to the cost of production and hitting Putin where it hurts by striking at his oil revenues.

Background

The Full list of today’s targets can be found here (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/list-of-russia-sanctions-targets-20-may-2025)

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