1 Ukraine and Russia: EU restrictive
measures
| Committee's assessment
| Politically important |
| Committee's decision | Not cleared from scrutiny; for debate on the floor of the House (decision reported on 3 September): debate recommendation now rescinded
|
| Document details | Further restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine
|
| Legal base | Article 29 TEU; unanimity and Article 215 TFEU; QMV
|
| Department | Foreign and Commonwealth Office
|
| Document numbers | (a) (36262), (b) (36263), (c) (36264), (d) (36265)
|
Summary and Committee's conclusions
1.1 On 18 July 2014, the EU agreed to expand the listing criteria
for Ukraine sanctions, allowing for the targeting of Russian nationals
whose actions undermine the sovereignty and independence of the
Ukraine — which, as the Minister for Europe (Mr David Lidington)
put it, "now allows the EU to target individuals and entities
with close ties to Vladimir Putin". Eight such individuals
were listed under these expanded measures on 30 July 2014, and
three entities.
1.2 In addition to these new listings, the Council agreed on 29
July a package of economic sanctions measures against Russia,
which came into effect on 1 August 2014 and will remain in place
until 31 July 2015, with an initial review of measures due no
later than 31 October 2014. Prohibitions encompass:
— the
export to and import from Russia of arms and related material
of all types, including Dual-Use technology, and the provision
of related technical or financial assistance;
— the
export of technologies and related technical or financial assistance
for deep water oil exploration or production, arctic oil exploration
or production and shale gas projects in Russia; and
— the
direct or indirect purchase or sale of bonds, equity or similar
financial instruments with a maturity exceeding 90 days, and issued
after 1 August 2014, if involving a major credit or finance development
institution established in Russia with over 50% public ownership
or control, or involving any legal person, entity or body acting
on behalf of, or owned outside the Union more than 50% by, certain
organisations.
1.3 The Minister said that, although the practical
impact of these measures could not yet be assessed, they sent
the message that the UK and the EU would not accept the efforts
of Russia to destabilise and undermine the sovereignty of the
Ukraine. The additional listings sought to target individuals
and entities close to Vladimir Putin, in a bid to increase the
pressure on those with influence at the top. The embargo would
ensure that the EU played no inadvertent role in facilitating
the supply of goods which could contribute to Russia's efforts
to support separatists in the Ukraine. The areas of the embargo
targeting shale gas projects and oil exploration & production
would ensure that the long-term development of Russia's oil sector
was slowed by the denial of vital technology from the EU and other
countries imposing similar measures. The financial measures were
designed to raise the cost of borrowing in Russia, for state corporations
and others.[1]
1.4 When it considered these measures on 3 September,
the Committee noted a number of wider considerations driving EU
policy that had not been mentioned by the Minister in his Explanatory
Memorandum, and also the absence of any mention of the widespread
discussion of how the Western alliance as a whole should respond,
which would plainly be the focal points of the NATO Summit that
was to be held in Wales later that week, on 4-5 September.
1.5 We accordingly recommended that these latest
EU measures be debated on the floor of the House as soon as possible,
and certainly no later than immediately after the House returns
from the conference recess, and that this debate should also be
used to examine what other measures have been agreed or are in
prospect in the aftermath of that Summit.[2]
On 10 September, a debate was held on the floor of the House on
Ukraine, Middle East, North Africa and Security.[3]
1.6 Given that these measures have now been overtaken
by the further measures announced on 11 September,[4]
we rescind our previous debate recommendation. We report separately
on the latest measures, and on the latest developments in the
EU-UK Association Agreement, elsewhere in this Report.
1.7 We again draw this chapter of our Report to
the attention of the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Full details of
the documents: Council
Decision 2014/508/CFSP of 30 July 2014 amending Decision 2014/145/CFSP
concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining
or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence
of Ukraine: (36262),—; Council Implementing Regulation (EU)
No. 826/2014 of 30 July 2014 implementing Regulation (EU) No.
269/2014 concerning restrictive measures in respect of actions
undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty
and independence of Ukraine: (36263),—; Council Decision
2014/512/CFSP of 31 July 2014 concerning restrictive measures
in view of Russia's actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine:
(36264), —; Council Regulation (EU) No. 833/2014 of 31 July
2014 concerning restrictive measures in view of Russia's actions
destabilising the situation in Ukraine: (36265), —.
Background
1.8 The full background is set out in our previous
Report.[5]
Previous Committee Reports
Eleventh Report HC 219-xi (2014-15), chapter 1 (3
September 2014): also see (36028) —, (36029) — and
(36030) —: First Report HC 219-i (2014-15), chapter 28 (4
June 2014); also see (35905) — and (35906) — : Forty-seventh
Report HC 83-xlii (2013-14), chapter 23 (30 April 2014) and Forty-fifth
Report HC 83-xl (2013-14), chapter 5 (2 April 2014); also see
(35880) — and (35881) —: Forty-fourth Report HC 83-xxxix
(2013-14), chapter 3 (26 March 2014) and (35848) — and (35849)
—: Fortieth Report HC 83-xxxvii (2013-14), chapter 1 (12
March 2014).
1 See the "Background" section of our Eleventh
Report for details. Also see "EU formally adopts additional
restrictive measures against Russia" at http://www.european-council.europa.eu/home-page/highlights/additional-restrictive-measures-against-russia?lang=en. Back
2
See Eleventh Report HC 219-xi (2014-15), chapter 1 (3 September
2014). Back
3
See Hansard 10 September 2014, cols. 913-1013 for the record of
the debate; also available at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201415/cmhansrd/cm140910/debtext/140910-0001.htm#14091032000002. Back
4
For details, see http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/EN/foraff/144868.pdf. Back
5
See Eleventh Report HC 219-xi (2014-15), chapter 1 (3 September
2014). Back
| 
