KIEV (Sputnik) — According to Smolii, the sanctions will target Ukrainian subsidiaries of Russia's Sberbank and VTB, as well as BM Bank, Prominvestbank and VS Bank.
"Under these sanctions the subsidiaries will be prohibited to carry out any financial operations in the interest of their mother-banks, including inter-bank loans, deposits, subordinate debts, purchase of shares, etc," Smolii said adding that these measures will protect the interests of Ukrainian customers.
Earlier on Wednesday, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine asked the National Bank and the Security Service of Ukraine to submit their proposals on sanctions against banks, some of whose shares are owned by Russian state banks.
On March 7, Sberbank began serving customers with passports issued by self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and the Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR). On Monday, Vassily Furman, the member of the council of the Ukraine's National Bank said that the bank was waiting for either denial or confirmation of this from the Russian side and might consider sanctions against the Ukrainian Sberbank branch if it was true.
On February 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognizing documents of DPR and LPR residents issued by local authorities as valid in Russia.
Kiev launched a military operation against the DPR and LPR in 2014, when the two regions refused to recognize the new Ukrainian government that came to power in what they consider a coup.
The conflicting parties were able to reach a truce agreement in Minsk in February 2015, but have since both reported several cases of ceasefire violations from the other side.
