EU Imposes Sanctions on Putin's Daughters

Russian President Putin takes part in a video conference call, dedicated to the opening of new military medical centers for patients infected with the coronavirus, in Moscow, Russia June 30. (Reuters)
Russian President Putin takes part in a video conference call, dedicated to the opening of new military medical centers for patients infected with the coronavirus, in Moscow, Russia June 30. (Reuters)
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EU Imposes Sanctions on Putin's Daughters

Russian President Putin takes part in a video conference call, dedicated to the opening of new military medical centers for patients infected with the coronavirus, in Moscow, Russia June 30. (Reuters)
Russian President Putin takes part in a video conference call, dedicated to the opening of new military medical centers for patients infected with the coronavirus, in Moscow, Russia June 30. (Reuters)

The European Union has imposed sanctions on two adult daughters of Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of a new package of measures targeting Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, according to two EU officials.

The EU included Maria Vorontsova and Katerina Tikhonova in its updated list of individuals facing an assets freeze and travel ban. The two EU officials from different EU member countries spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because the updated list of sanctions has not been published yet.

The move from the European bloc follows a similar move two days earlier by the United States.

In the wake of evidence of torture and killings emerging from war zones outside Kyiv, the EU decided to impose a fifth package of measures in retaliation for Russia’s war.

In addition to sanctions on individuals, the 27-nation bloc also approved an embargo on coal imports. That will be the first EU sanctions targeting Russia’s lucrative energy industry over its war in Ukraine and is estimated to be worth 4 billion euros ($4.4 billion) per year, the EU presidency said. The EU has already started working on additional sanctions, including on oil imports.



North Korean Leader Vows Support for Russia in its War on Ukraine

A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (L) greeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Wonsan, North Korea, 12 July 2025 (Issued 13 July 2025). EPA/KCNA
A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (L) greeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Wonsan, North Korea, 12 July 2025 (Issued 13 July 2025). EPA/KCNA
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North Korean Leader Vows Support for Russia in its War on Ukraine

A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (L) greeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Wonsan, North Korea, 12 July 2025 (Issued 13 July 2025). EPA/KCNA
A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (L) greeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a meeting in Wonsan, North Korea, 12 July 2025 (Issued 13 July 2025). EPA/KCNA

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has told Russia's top diplomat his country was ready to “unconditionally support” all actions taken by Moscow to resolve the conflict in Ukraine, state media has reported, as the two countries held high-level strategic talks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is on a three-day visit to North Korea, which has provided troops and arms for Russia's war with Ukraine and pledged more military support as Moscow tries to make advances in the conflict, Reuters reported on Saturday.

Kim met Lavrov in the eastern coastal city of Wonsan where the two countries' foreign ministers held their second strategic dialogue, pledging further cooperation under a partnership treaty signed last year that includes a mutual defense pact.

Kim told Lavrov the steps taken by the allies in response to radically evolving global geopolitics will contribute greatly to securing peace and security around the world, North Korea's state news agency KCNA reported.

“Kim Jong Un reaffirmed the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) is ready to unconditionally support and encourage all the measures taken by the Russian leadership as regards the tackling of the root cause of the Ukrainian crisis,” KCNA said.

Earlier, Russia's foreign ministry said Lavrov met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the coastal city of Wonsan on Saturday, where he described the two nations' relations as “an invincible fighting brotherhood.”

The ministry quoted Lavrov as saying that the visit represented the continuation of “strategic dialogue” between the two sides inaugurated by Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to North Korea last year.

In a message passed on by Lavrov, Putin said that he hoped for more direct contacts in future, TASS news agency reported.

Lavrov, the ministry said, also thanked North Korea for the troops it had sent to Russia.

Relations between the two countries deepened during the conflict in Ukraine.

Thousands of North Korean troops were deployed during the months-long campaign to oust Ukrainian forces from Russia's Kursk region, while Pyongyang has also supplied Russia with munitions.

Lavrov also met with his North Korean counterpart, Choe Son Hui, TASS reported.