Montenegro and Albania both aligned themselves with the Decisions of the Council to extend the sanctions in place in response to the “illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol” and in respect of the situation in Ukraine. EFTA countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, have followed suit and extended their own sanctions regimes to match the extended timelines of the various EU regimes in force in these regions. See our client alert for an overview of the sanctions’ timeline.
Switzerland also, from 1 July 2015, implemented additional rules to extend the import ban for war materials from Russia and Ukraine. The prohibition now applies to imports of explosives, pyrotechnic devices and propellant powder for military purposes that were not previously covered. This is part of the Government’s policy to ensure that Switzerland “cannot be misused to circumvent the measures imposed by the European Union”. Press Release.
