London, United Kingdom. Britain on Tuesday unveiled sanctions against 35 people and entities it said were involved in recruiting vulnerable migrants to fight for Russia against Ukraine and producing drones for use in the conflict.
Sanctions under irregular migration regime
The Foreign Office announced 17 designations under its global irregular migration sanctions regime, relating to what it said were trafficking networks facilitating the travel of people to be sent “to the front line as cannon fodder.”
The Foreign Office said the sanctions relate to the trafficking of people from countries including Iraq, Somalia, Syria and Yemen to fight in Ukraine, and to travel to Poland and Finland for the purpose of causing destabilisation.
Designations under Russia sanctions regime
Britain also added 18 designations under its Russia sanctions regime, several relating to the Alabuga Start programme, which the Foreign Office described as “a Russian recruitment scheme that hires individuals from outside Russia, usually from economically insecure backgrounds.”
The ministry said those recruited, who are largely from Cameroon, are put to work at a plant located 500 miles (800 km) east of Moscow in the Republic of Tatarstan to produce drones.
Government response
Sanctions minister Stephen Doughty said in a statement: “The practice of exploiting vulnerable people to prop up Russia’s failing and illegal war in Ukraine is barbaric.”
He said the sanctions would “disrupt the operations of those trafficking migrants as cannon fodder and feeding (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s drone factories with illicit components”.
Talks on EU loan to Ukraine
Britain on Sunday said it was ready to enter talks to join the European Union’s 90 billion euro ($105 billion) loan to Ukraine, which it described as a further sign of deepening European defence ties.
What impact do you think the new sanctions will have on the networks Britain says are involved in recruitment and drone production?