Sanctions against countries supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Sanctions and export controls against Russia do not derive from any UN Security Council resolution but are being unilaterally implemented by a coalition, led primarily by the G7 (the US, UK, Canada, Japan, Italy, France and Germany) and the EU, that includes more than 30 countries around the globe and who represent more than 50% of the global economy. There are, however, several countries, including China, India, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Saudi Arabia who do not support unilateral sanctions against Russia. Turkey, which is a NATO Member State, and Serbia, which is an EU candidate country, have also refused to implement sanctions.

Nevertheless, Russia is now the most sanctioned country in the world. Questions remain however, over the effectiveness of those sanctions as Russia has sought alternative markets and established new trade routes and methods for circumvention.

Sanctions evasion 

Countries in the Middle East and Central Asia with strong links to Russia, who have generally adopted a neutral stance toward the conflict in Ukraine and do not support unilateral sanctions, have increasingly attracted Western attention as bilateral trade with Russia has risen dramatically, particularly in components and dual-use goods and technologies.

Russia has also adopted new methods for circumvention in response to sanctions and in particular those relating to its global trade in oil and gas. Russia has been exploiting international procurement networks and has made extensive use of a growing ‘shadow fleet’ of tankers to transport sanctioned Russian crude oil around the globe and/or circumvent the oil price cap instituted by the G7.

As the sanctions regime against Russia has evolved, the focus of effort by the G7 countries and the EU has increasingly been on preventing sanctions evasion and closing any remaining loopholes in the existing regime.

To assist in preventing the re-export of goods and technologies crucial to Russia’s military development from non-sanctioning third countries, the UK, US, EU and Japan have adopted a Common High Priority Items List, which are largely considered dual-use technologies that Russia has been actively seeking to procure via neighbouring countries.

Individuals and entities in third countries have also increasingly become sanctions targets. The US has sanctioned companies and entities in third countries on a much broader scale than the EU and the UK.

These sanctions measures are examined in greater detail in Library research briefing: Sanctions against Russia.

Countries providing military support to Russia

So far, secondary sanctions have not been imposed on countries, such as India, that have continued to trade with Russia. However, the US and its allies have increasingly censured countries and state-affiliated organisations who are assisting Russia in the conduct of its war in Ukraine or in evading sanctions, namely Belarus, Iran, North Korea and, increasingly, China. It is those countries which are the focus of this briefing paper.

Belarus

Sanctions have been imposed by the UK, EU, US and other allies for Belarus’ role in facilitating and supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Concerns remain however, that the lack of total alignment between the Russia and Belarus sanctions regimes is allowing Russia to continue to use its neighbour to evade sanctions. Latest sanctions measures, in particular those announced by the EU in June 2024, have sought to address this problem.

Iran

Longstanding sanctions have been in place against Iran for human rights violations and in relation to their nuclear proliferation activities and alleged efforts to develop a nuclear weapons programme.

Since October 2022 sanctions have also been imposed in response to Iran’s military support to Russia, specifically the transfer to Russia of Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles which have been used to target Ukrainian civilian and critical national infrastructure and more recently for the alleged transfer of Iranian Fateh 360 short-range ballistic missiles to Russia, for their use in Ukraine. Iran has denied providing Russia with its drones for use in Ukraine. In September 2024 Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also denied that Iran had transferred ballistic missiles during the current government’s tenure, but would not be drawn on the actions of the previous government saying, “it is a possibility”.

The US has imposed more wide-ranging sanctions designations than the UK or EU, targeting not just Iranian state actors and individuals but international procurement, financial and transport networks supporting Iran’s UAV and missile programmes. Such a broad approach does, however, make direct comparisons with the EU and UK sanctions regimes much more difficult and  has led to concerns over gaps in sanctions alignment between allies.

North Korea

Sanctions have been in place for several years against North Korea in response to its nuclear and ballistic missile-related activities. Many derive from UN sanctions measures, in place since 2006, and which all UN member states, including Russia, are obliged to observe.

Since early 2023, however, sanctions have been imposed on North Korea for providing ammunition and ballistic missiles to Russia for use in Ukraine.

China

Companies based in China and Hong Kong have increasingly been targeted by the US, the EU and UK for their direct support to Russia’s miliary and industrial complex, or in helping Russia evade sanctions. Such support has been restricted to dual-use technologies and materials which can have either military or civilian applications.

For several months the US has been warning China about its tacit support to Russia’s defence industrial base and its facilitation of the war through its support to Russia’s economy. In response, the US administration has taken a much broader approach than the UK or EU and sanctioned an even larger number of individuals and companies operating in China and Hong Kong.  It has also indicated its willingness to impose further secondary sanctions if necessary, including on Chinese financial institutions that facilitate weapons transfers.

In its Washington Summit Declaration on 10 July 2024, NATO said that China had become “a decisive enabler” of Russia’s war in Ukraine and called on the country, to “cease all material and political support to Russia’s war effort”.