European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Sunday a new round of punitive measures against Russia. The European Union will shut down its airspace for Russia, including "a prohibition on all Russian-owned, Russian registered or Russian-controlled aircraft," which will not be able to land in, take off or overfly the territory of the EU.
The union is also excluding "important Russian banks" from the SWIFT system, banning the transactions of Russia's central bank and freezing all its assets, as well as banning state-owned Russia Today and Sputnik media outlets from broadcasting in the EU.
The EU will impose additional sanctions on Belarus for its role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, stopping Belarusian "exports of products from mineral fuels to tobacco, wood and timber, cement, iron and steel." Finally, "for the first time ever, the European Union will finance the purchase and delivery of weapons and other equipment to a country that is under attack," Von der Leyen said as the EU extends its support of Ukraine.
