Russia loses court case against EU and UK sanctions

A European Court of Justice (ECJ) judgement has confirmed the legal right of the European Union (EU) and the UK to subject Russian oil companies to financial sanctions and implement them using criminal law, writes Keith Nuthall. These rights had been challenged by Russian oil and gas major Rosneft, which was upset over restricted access to foreign capital, technology and certain oil transaction services. The case had been referred to the ECJ by the High Court for England and Wales.

The ECJ has now confirmed that the EU and UK were acting within their legal rights when imposing sanctions harming Rosneft over Russia’s Ukraine policies. An ECJ statement on the judgment said: ‘Interference with Rosneft’s freedom to conduct a business and its right to property cannot be considered to be disproportionate.’ It added that EU rules allowed a member state to impose ‘criminal penalties that are to be applied in the event of an infringement’ of these sanctions.