Japan sanctions 9 Russian individuals, 7 companies, bank

Tokyo, March 1 (Representative) Japan has imposed sanctions on nine Russian individuals and seven companies, sanctioned Russia’s Tinkoff Bank and prohibited exports to 29 Russian entities, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said on Friday. A separate paragraph of the ministry’s document says that sanctions have been also imposed against three individuals “considered to be directly involved in the ‘annexation’ of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol or the destabilization of Eastern Part of Ukraine, as well as individuals of eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, who are considered to be directly involved in the purported ‘incorporation’ by Russia.”

Japan’s updated sanctions list now also includes Russia’s Atomflot, a company and service base that maintains the fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers, JSC Balashikha Casting and Mechanical Plant, JSC Dubnensky Machine-Building Plant, State Transport Leasing Company (GTLK), Omsktransmash (Omsk transport machine plant), Moscow-based system integrator in the field of information security NPO Echelon and others. The list also includes the chairman of the government of Russia’s Chechen Republic, Muslim Khuchiev, GTLK Director-General Yevgeny Dietrich, Artyom Uss, the son of ex-governor of Russia’s Krasnoyarsk territory, and others.Sanctions have also been imposed on Tinkoff Bank, involving a ban on transactions and freezing of accounts in case they are found in Japan. The sanctions against the bank will go into effect on March 31. Export restrictions have also been imposed on 29 Russian entities, including Russian defense manufacturer Kalashnikov, defense corporation Almaz-Antey, weapons manufacturing company Bazalt and others.Japan also prohibited imports of Russia’s non-industrial diamonds, including diamonds processed outside Russia, the release said.