Japan to Expel 8 Russian Officials, Impose New Sanctions

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a press conference at the prime minister's official residence Friday, April 8, 2022. (Rodrigo Reyes Marin/Pool Photo via AP)
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a press conference at the prime minister's official residence Friday, April 8, 2022. (Rodrigo Reyes Marin/Pool Photo via AP)
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Japan to Expel 8 Russian Officials, Impose New Sanctions

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a press conference at the prime minister's official residence Friday, April 8, 2022. (Rodrigo Reyes Marin/Pool Photo via AP)
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a press conference at the prime minister's official residence Friday, April 8, 2022. (Rodrigo Reyes Marin/Pool Photo via AP)

Japan announced Friday it is expelling eight Russian diplomats and trade officials and will phase out imports of Russian coal and oil because of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan will also ban imports of Russian lumber, vodka and other goods, and will prohibit new Japanese investment in Russia.

It will also step up financial sanctions against Russian banks and freeze assets of about 400 more individuals and groups, including military-linked organizations, Kishida said at a news conference, The Associated Press said.

He said Russia must be held accountable for “war crimes" in Ukraine, including atrocities against civilians and attacks on nuclear facilities, that are “severe violations of international law and are absolutely impermissible."

“We are at a critical moment in our efforts to get Russia to stop its cruel invasion of Ukraine and restore peace. Everyone, please cooperate," Kishida said, referring to the sanctions' impact on Japanese people, such as higher prices for gasoline, electricity and food.

Earlier Friday, the Foreign Ministry announced it is expelling eight Russian diplomats and trade officials. European countries have already expelled dozens of Russian diplomats as their relationships have plunged over Moscow's war against Ukraine.

Europe and the United States have also stepped up sanctions against Russia, including restrictions on coal imports, following revelations of harrowing atrocities against civilians in Ukrainian cities.

Kishida said the additional sanctions are in line with an agreement by the Group of Seven advanced industrialized nations.

The measures contained in a G-7 leaders’ statement include a phasing out or banning of imports of Russian coal and oil. Japanese trade minister Koichi Hagiuda said Japan plans to gradually reduce its energy reliance on Russia while seeking ways to reduce the burden on Japanese companies.

Japan has already imposed a series of sanctions, including freezing assets of top Russian officials such as President Vladimir Putin, restricting exports to Russia of goods including sensitive items transferrable to military use, and removing key banks from an international messaging system.

Japan is taking a greater role in the international effort against Russia's invasion of Ukraine because of concerns about its impact on East Asia, where China's military has grown increasingly assertive.

Japan has already faced reprisals from Russia. Moscow recently announced the suspension of talks on a peace treaty with Tokyo that include negotiations over Russian-held islands which the Soviet Union seized from Japan at the end of World War II.



Iran Guards Chief Says Netanyahu ICC Warrant 'Political Death' of Israel

Revolutionary Guards chief General Hossein Salami - File/AFP
Revolutionary Guards chief General Hossein Salami - File/AFP
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Iran Guards Chief Says Netanyahu ICC Warrant 'Political Death' of Israel

Revolutionary Guards chief General Hossein Salami - File/AFP
Revolutionary Guards chief General Hossein Salami - File/AFP

The head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Friday described the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a former defense minister as the “end and political death” of Israel, in a speech.
“This means the end and political death of the Zionist regime, a regime that today lives in absolute political isolation in the world and its officials can no longer travel to other countries,” Revolutionary Guards chief General Hossein Salami said in the speech aired on state TV.
In the first official reaction by Iran, Salami called the ICC warrant “a welcome move” and a “great victory for the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance movements,” both supported by the Islamic republic, AFP reported.
The court also issued a warrant for the arrest of Hamas’s military chief Mohammed Deif.
The warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant were issued in response to accusations of crimes against humanity and war crimes during Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, sparked by the Palestinian militant group’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The ICC’s move theoretically limits the movement of Netanyahu, as any of the court’s 124 national members would be obliged to arrest him on their territory.
The court’s chief prosecutor Karim Khan urged the body’s members to act on the warrants, and for non-members to work together in “upholding international law.”