Ottawa’s new round of sanctions on Russians includes celebrities, Wagner Group heads

Advertisement

Advertise with us

OTTAWA - Canada is sanctioning more Russians whom Ottawa accuses of supporting Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and mercenary violence in Africa.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Monthly Digital Subscription

$0 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*No charge for 4 weeks then price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

Monthly Digital Subscription

$4.99/week*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*Billed as $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

No thanks

*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/07/2023 (903 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA – Canada is sanctioning more Russians whom Ottawa accuses of supporting Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and mercenary violence in Africa.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly has announced new sanctions against 38 individuals and 25 entities.

The list has a focus on the paramilitary Wagner Group, which has sent combatants to Ukraine and across Africa.

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly speaks with reporters at the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on Tuesday, July 11, 2023. Canada is sanctioning more Russians whom Ottawa accuses of supporting Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and mercenary violence in Africa.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly speaks with reporters at the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on Tuesday, July 11, 2023. Canada is sanctioning more Russians whom Ottawa accuses of supporting Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and mercenary violence in Africa.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

The sanctions also target Russia’s nuclear, drone and cultural industries, in response to that country’s attacks on Ukraine’s nuclear and cultural sites.

The people sanctioned cannot have business dealings with Canadians or travel to Canada. Those added to the list Monday include pop singer Zara and actress Maria Shukshina, as well as the media outlet Readovka, Russia’s cultural ministry and mobile-network operators.

French MPs have asked the European Union to add the Wagner Group to its terror listing, after countries such as Lithuania applied their own domestic labels to the group. The Conservatives have called on Ottawa to follow suit.

But bureaucrats told the House of Commons foreign-affairs committee last month that doing so might make it harder to prosecute Russia for war crimes.

The political director for international security at Global Affairs Canada said that’s because a terrorist designation would differentiate the activities of the Wagner Group from those of Kremlin, despite the company being deeply tied to Moscow.

“If we have difficulty associating the actions of Wagner with the Russian state, it will be more difficult to hold President (Vladimir) Putin accountable for those atrocities,” Heidi Hulan testified.

“I’m in regular contact with the U.K. and the U.S. on a wide variety of issues,” she said.

“We have discussed Wagner. I can tell the committee that none of those colleagues have raised with me any intention to list Wagner as a terrorist entity.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 20, 2023.

Report Error Submit a Tip

Canada

LOAD MORE