18th package of sanctions against Russia: A message from the EU to Moscow that Europe will not back down in its support for Ukraine

With the end of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine still uncertain, the EU has decided “to keep raising the pressure until Russia ends its war”[1] by approving on 18 July 2025 the 18th package of economic and individual sanctions against Russia.

This 18th package is introduced as “one of its strongest sanctions packages against Russia to date.” It intends to hit hard on Russia’s energy, banking and military sectors.

Below some developments on the new measures:

1/ Curtailing Russia’s energy revenue:

• Oil expense: This 18th package of sanctions lowers the price cap for crude oil from USD 60 to USD 47.6 per barrel, to align it with current global oil prices and introduces an automatic and dynamic mechanism to modify the oil price cap and ensure that this price cap is effective.
• Shadow fleet value chain (which circumvent sanctions on the energy sector and/or transport military equipment for Russia): 105 additional vessels are subject to a port access and maritime transport services ban, bringing the total number of listed vessels to 444. This ban covers non-EU tankers that are part of Vladimir Putin’s shadow fleet. The EU also imposes full-fledged sanctions against Russian and international companies managing shadow fleet vessels, traders of Russian crude oil and a major customer of the shadow fleet – a refinery in India with Rosneft as its main shareholder.
• Import ban on refined petroleum products made from Russian crude oil and coming from any third country, excepted for Canada, Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.
• Transactions on Nord Stream 1 and 2 are fully banned.

2/ Reinforcement of sanctions in the banking sector:

• Full transaction ban for Russian banks: All Russian banks are now subject to the prohibition on providing EU-based specialized financial messaging services.
• Circumvention: Expansion of sanctions to more third-country financial and credit institutions and crypto-asset service providers which frustrate EU sanctions, or which support Russia’s war against Ukraine.
• Ban on Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and its sub-funds and companies.
• New ban on software management systems and software used for certain purpose sin the banking and financial sector.

3/ Curbing Russia’s military capacities:

• Full-fledged sanctions on suppliers of the Russian military industrial complex, including 3 entities based in China and 8 companies operating in the Belarusian military-industrial complex).
• Tighter export restrictions for 26 new entities concerning dual-use goods and technologies (including entities located in China, Hong Kong and Türkiye).
• Further export bans worth more than €2.5 billion.

4/ Belarus:

Additionally, the 18th package further mirrors the measures imposed on Belarus’ trade with those imposed on Russia and a ban on specialized financial messaging services is upgraded to a full transaction ban and an embargo on imports of arms from Belarus is introduced.

Transactions with Russian entities, but also third-parties that may be connected with Russia, are becoming more and more sensitive.

We remain at your disposal to help you navigate the new restrictive measures.

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[1] Kaja Kallas, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy

This summary is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice nor does it create an attorney-client relationship with Rimon, P.C. or its affiliates.

Stephanie De Giovanni is an accomplished international and litigation attorney with over 20 years of experience practicing commercial law and complex commercial litigation. Ms. De Giovanni has a background in international distribution law and spent her early career focused on commercial agency and the setting-up of distribution networks. For the duration of her legal career, she has dealt with termination issues and the disputes arising therefrom. Read more here.

Elia El Kouh is an Associate in Rimon’s Paris office. Ms. El Kouh focuses on international law, commercial law, litigation, and compliance. She has prior experience in law firms in Paris and Morroco advising clients on matters relating to commercial law, criminal business law, economic law, contract law, litigation, and arbitration.  Ms. El Kouh also has experience serving as in-house counsel for the legal department of an automotive manufacturer, where she advised on issues relating to contract law, competition law, distribution, and consumer law. Read more here.