EU Includes Four DPR, LPR Election Candidates in New Sanctions List

In total, there are 13 names of politicians of the self-proclaimed republics in Ukraine's southeast and five public organizations in the new sanctions list.

BRUSSELS, November 29 (Sputnik) — The European Union has extended its sanctions list by including four candidates who participated in the regional elections in the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics (DPR, LPR) in southeastern Ukraine on November 2, the official statement in the EU Official Journal said.

“In view of the continued gravity of the situation on the ground in Ukraine, the Council considers that additional persons and entities should be added to the list of natural and legal persons, entities and bodies subject to restrictive measures as set out in the Annex to Decision 2014/145/CFSP,” EU statement said.

Those who are included in the list are not allowed to enter the European Union, their assets in the 28-member bloc are frozen.

In total, there are 13 names and five public organizations in the new list. In particular, the list includes those who aspired to the post of the LPR head: LPR Health Minister Larysa Ayrapetyan and trade union leader Oleg Akimov, as well as two ex-candidates for the position of DPR head: a member of DPR parliament Yuriy Sivokonenko and parliamentary deputy speaker Aleksandr Kofman.

The list also features a number of other LPR politicians: the head of the Luhansk Election Commission Serhiy Kozyakov, Deputy Prime Minister for Finances Dmitry Semyonov, Defense Minister Oleg Bugrov, Education, Science, Culture and Religion Minister Lesya Lapteva, Minister of Education Ihor Kostenok, and the first deputy speaker of the LPR parliament Vladyslav Deynego. DPR politicians who ended up on the list include First Deputy Prime Minister Ravil Khalikov, the head of the Administration for Governmental Affairs Yevgeniy Mikhaylov and DPR parliamentarian Yevgeniy Orlov.

The entities included in the European Union sanctions list are the following: Donetsk Republic public organization, Peace to Luhansk Region, Free Donbas, People’s Union, and Luhansk Economic Union.

On November 17, the foreign affairs ministers of the European Union ordered EU bodies to add more independence supporters from eastern Ukraine to the bloc's sanctions list by the end of the month.

The decision brings the total number of people subject to an EU-wide travel ban and asset freeze for allegedly undermining Ukraine's territorial integrity to 132, and the number of entities whose assets have been ordered frozen to 28. The list includes not only leaders of DPR and LPR but also senior Russian lawmakers and entities.