Landing ban for Aeroflot
London blocks Russia from the financial market
02/24/2022, 8:31 p.m
Great Britain imposes extensive sanctions on Russia: Russian banks are excluded from the British financial system. Prime Minister Johnson also announces measures against more than 100 people and companies. “Oligarchs will not be able to hide,” says the head of government.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced sweeping sanctions on Russian banks in the UK in response to the Russian attack on Ukraine. “Day by day, week by week,” Russia will now be pushed a little further out of the global economy, Johnson said in the London House of Commons. The assets of 100 other people and institutions in the UK are also to be frozen. This affects companies that manufacture armaments, for example.
The Russian state airline Aeroflot should no longer be allowed to land in Great Britain with its machines. They want to “completely exclude Russian banks from the British financial sector,” announced Johnson. In cooperation with the USA, it is therefore proposed to completely freeze the assets of the major Russian bank VTB. Shortly thereafter, Washington announced sanctions against VTB Bank and other Russian credit institutions. They would be excluded from the US financial market and transactions in US dollars, said US President Joe Biden.
According to Johnson, Russian banks should no longer be able to trade in pounds on the British financial market or carry out clearing activities there. In addition, the sums that Russian citizens can deposit in British accounts should be limited. “Oligarchs in London will not be able to hide,” said the head of government. Because of its role in the conflict, neighboring Belarus should also be subject to sanctions, Johnson announced.
“All options are on the table”
The measures are closely coordinated with the US and other Western allies, Johnson said. The British PM has reportedly pushed hard to ban Russia from the Swift international payments system. So far, however, there has been resistance from some EU countries. It is important that all sanctions are imposed in consultation and unity, Johnson said, adding: “All options are on the table.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin will never wash the blood of Ukraine from his hands, Johnson said. The British government had previously summoned the Russian ambassador to London. In the conversation with Ambassador Andrei Kelin, Foreign Minister Liz Truss sharply criticized the “unprovoked and unjustified” Russian invasion of Ukraine, which is making Russia “a pariah” internationally, according to sources in ministry circles.
Truss accused Moscow of “having repeatedly lied” in that Russia repeatedly denied any invasion plans. According to the ministry, it was an extremely tense meeting, at the end of which Truss “threw out” the ambassador when he began repeating the “Kremlin’s incredible propaganda”.