MOSCOW, July 26 (RIA Novosti) – The recent sanctions by the European Union targeting mostly Russian security officials will hardly hit Russia, the measures look mild so far and are largely a mere showcase, a number of experts told RIA Novosti on Saturday.
The European Union extended earlier on Saturday sanctions against another 15 Russian officials, as well as the representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics. The blacklist included in particular Russian Federal Security Service chief Aleksander Bortnikov, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service Mikhail Fradkova and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.
Sanctions were also imposed against a number of Crimean entities.
Earlier on Saturday, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said that the Commission had adopted legislative proposals on sectoral sanctions against Russia targeting capital markets, defense, dual use goods, and sensitive technologies, including in the energy sector.
The proposals are due to be discussed by the EU member states on July 29.
According to an expert of the Institute of Socio-Economic and Political Studies, Alexei Zudin, Europe has simply expanded sanctions against certain people and not moved to sectoral sanctions.
“They follow the course they have chosen from the very beginning. Similar sanctions, as it was previously noted by many experts, cannot seriously hurt Russia,” Zudin stressed.
Political analyst Pavel Svyatenkov believes that the EU sanctions are relatively mild so far.
“These sanctions are relatively mild so far, if we may use such terms in regards to sanctions, because the measures target only high-ranking officials, which seems quite unpleasant but still bearable. Currently the sanctions are mild and it looks like Europe has no intention to have a row with Russia,” the expert said.
Political analyst Nikolai Mironov told RIA Novosti that the EU sanctions are largely of a moral and political nature and are aimed to stress that the European Union holds Russia accountable for the actions by independence supporters in Ukraine.
“We know that [the EU] has been considering suspending investments in Russia. But still we see only some targeted sanctions, which in this case are purely moral and political and I think it bears evidence of a certain concession to the United States, which does not undermine economic relations between Russia and Europe,” Mironov elaborated.
