On Monday, the Council of the European Union adopted a decision providing for travel restrictions and for the freezing of funds and economic resources of certain persons responsible for actions which undermine or threaten the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine, including actions on the future status of any part of the territory which are contrary to the Ukrainian Constitution, and natural or legal persons, entities or bodies associated with them.

      The ban list includes Sergey Aksyonov, Vladimir Konstantinov, Rustam Temirgaliev, Deniz Berezovsky, Aleksei Chaly, Pyotr Zima, Yury Zherebtsov, Sergey Tsekov, Viktor Ozerov, Vladimir Dzhabarov, Andrei Klishas, Nikolai Ryzhkov, Evgeny Bushmin, Aleksandr Totoonov, Oleg Panteleev, Sergei Mironov, Sergei Zheleznyak, Leonid Slutski, Aleksandr Vitko, Anatoly Sidorov, Aleksandr Galkin.

      The Regulation shall apply:

      (a) within the territory of the Union, including its airspace;

      (b) on board any aircraft or any vessel under the jurisdiction of a Member State;

      (c) to any person inside or outside the territory of the Union who is a national of a Member State;

      (d) to any legal person, entity or body, inside or outside the territory of the Union, which is incorporated or constituted under the law of a Member State;

      (e) to any legal person, entity or body in respect of any business done in whole or in part within the Union.

      The Heads of State or Government decided to suspend bilateral talks with the Russian Federation on visa matters as well as talks with the Russian Federation on a comprehensive new Agreement which would replace the existing Partnership and Cooperation Agreement.

      On Monday, the Kremlin has signed an order to recognize the independence of Crimea after its secession referendum on March 16 when the region’s ethnic Russian majority overwhelmingly voted to join Russia.

      The move has been condemned by the West, with the EU and the US imposing a raft of sanctions on individuals and freezing military cooperation.