The Federal Council decision of 25 March means that Switzerland remains in line with the measures imposed by the EU on 9 and 15 March in response to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. On 16 March, Switzerland had already adopted the extended list of persons and entities subject to financial sanctions imposed by the EU.

The export of goods and related services for the Russian energy sector is now prohibited. Also prohibited is the participation in businesses active in the energy sector and the provision of loans or other financial resources to such businesses.

A ban is introduced on the import of iron and steel goods from Russia, or originating in Russia, as well as a ban on the export of luxury goods and maritime navigation goods to Russia. In the financial sector, transactions with certain state-owned companies and the provision of credit rating services are prohibited.

However, the Federal Council has decided to allow certain exceptions from the financial sanctions for humanitarian purposes. This eases business relationships necessary for the work of humanitarian organisations.

This means that all measures contained in the EU’s fourth package of sanctions have been implemented.

However, the Federal Council took the decision not to implement the EU measure of 1 March suspending the broadcasting of contents from certain Russian media outlets, namely Sputnik and Russia Today. Despite the fact that these outlets are used to spread targeted propaganda and disinformation by the Russian Federation, the Federal Council is of the opinion that it is more effective to counter untrue and harmful statements with facts instead of preventing them from being broadcast.

Ukraine: Implementation of further EU sanctions