Moscow Slams New EU Sanctions Against Russians as Illegitimate

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - New sanctions by the European Union against Russians are illegitimate, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Tuesday.

Earlier this week, Brussels imposed sanctions on the so-called Wagner Group and several Russian companies.

"The European Union continues the practice of unilateral restrictions, illegitimate from an international legal point of view. New sanctions have been introduced against eight Russian citizens and four organisations groundlessly declared guilty of involvement in a certain private military company", Zakharova said in a statement, published by the ministry.

The spokeswoman added that "hysteria" continues to unfold in the West around Russia's activities in Africa.

On Monday, EU member states' foreign ministers met in Brussels and decided to impose sanctions against eight individuals and four legal entities, which - according to the bloc - are associated with the international activities of the Wagner Group.

Moscow has firmly denied its involvement in paramilitary activities in Africa, saying the presence of Russian instructors in foreign countries is official and done at the request of their governments.