Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine welcomes the EU Council first ever decision to impose sanctions in the framework of the new Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime. The sanctions were imposed today against four Russian officials for serious human rights violations in Russia.

This EU decision demonstrates once again that the protection of human rights remains an unconditional priority of the EU foreign policy.

It is important to emphasize that the new sanctions regime was initiated within a very short time frame. It may become an additional effective tool for our country to combat severe violations of human rights on the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, and to restore our territorial integrity within the internationally recognized borders.

We hope that the new EU sanctions regime is also utilized against individuals responsible for the suppression of fundamental human rights and freedoms on the temporary occupied territories of Crimea and Sevastopol. Any crime of the Russian occupation authorities must not remain unpunished.