Russian Energy Ministry: EU sanctions are illegal

The imposition of sanctions by the EU in connection with the supply of Siemens turbines to Crimea is politically motivated and incompatible with international law, according to the Russian Ministry of Energy.

The fact is that after the annexation of Crimea to Russia in 2014, the EU bans its companies from doing business with companies on the peninsula. Siemens says there is evidence that four turbines that were supplied for a project in southern Russia were illegally transferred to Crimea. Moscow claims that all equipment supplied to Crimea, including turbines, is manufactured in Russia.

“Intervention in a dispute between two economic entities is a clear violation of international legal norms,” the ministry said in a statement. “There is no doubt that the European Union made this decision only for political reasons,” the ministry said.

EU countries agreed on Friday to add to the EU blacklist some Russian citizens and Russian companies in connection with the supply of Siemens gas turbines in Crimea. This applies to three companies involved in the transfer of gas turbines to the peninsula and three representatives of Russia, including the Deputy Minister of Energy.

The Russian Foreign Ministry assesses the decision of the European Union as "an unreasonable and unfriendly step" and warned that it reserves the right to retaliate.