On October 15, 2018, the Council of the European Union adopted Regulation (EU) 2018/1542, condemning the assassination attempt on Russian activist Alexei Navalny, and imposing restrictive measures on six individuals and one entity to implement Decision (CFSP) 2018/1544 concerning the proliferation and use of chemical weapons.
The individuals, all Russian nationals, include the Chief of the Presidential Domestic Policy Directorate, the First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office, the Director of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, two Deputy Ministers of Defense, and the Plenipotentiary Representative of the Russian president in Siberia. Sanctions were also imposed on the State Scientific Research Institute for Organic Chemistry and Technology, ostensibly responsible for the destruction of stockpiles of Soviet-era chemical weapons, including toxic nerve agents of the Novichok group. According to the EU, laboratory tests in Germany, France and Sweden concluded that Navalny had been poisoned with a Novichok-related nerve agent which could only have been accessed by state authorities in the Russian Federation.
Pursuant to this resolution, all funds and economic resources belonging to the designated individuals and entity are frozen, and natural and legal persons and entities must supply information about such resources to the competent authorities immediately. In addition, actions taken to circumvent the restrictive measures are prohibited.
Simultaneous with the EU announcement, the United Kingdom indicated that it would enforce these sanctions.
Regulation (EU) 2018/1542 | Identifying Information| UK gov’t. press release