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Britain and the European Union on Wednesday announced coordinated sanctions against pro-Russian separatists, as well as more oligarchs and their relatives.

The UK government said that, in coordination with the EU, it is sanctioning "178 Russian separatists" in eastern Ukraine, in addition to six more oligarchs and their families and employees.

"This comes after multiple reports last week that Russia was barbarically targeting civilians in those regions," Britain's Foreign Office said in a statement.

"In the wake of horrific rocket attacks on civilians in Eastern Ukraine, we are today sanctioning those who prop up the illegal breakaway regions and are complicit in atrocities against the Ukrainian people," said Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.

"We will continue to target all those who aid and abet (President Vladimir) Putin's war."

Further oligarchs hit by sanctions include Vagit Alekperov, the head of Russian oil giant Lukoil, and Vladimir Ievtouchenkov, chairman of the Sistema conglomerate.

Britain is taking part in an international effort to punish Russia with asset freezes, travel bans and sanctions, after Putin ordered the assault on Ukraine on February 24.

Those sanctions have so far targeted Russian defence, trade and transport companies.

Truss said the latest package would include extending a UK import ban on Russian goods, to include iron and steel from Thursday.

"We will not rest in our mission to stop Putin's war machine in its tracks," Truss said.

London has sanctioned more than 1,400 individuals and businesses linked to Russia -- including more than 100 oligarchs and their family members -- since Moscow's military offensive began.

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Britain and European Union coordinate over more Russian sanctions - Economic Times

As it became clear on Sunday evening that Marine Le Pen will face incumbent Emmanuel Macron in the second round of France's presidential election, the European Union and NATO are coming toterms with the possibility of a Euroskeptic leader in the Elyse Palace - onewho has been a longtime enthusiast of Russian president Vladimir Putin.

For Brussels, Washington and NATO, the next 10 days will be crucial for all three to take on board whether Paris will remain committed to the European project and stay on side againstPutin's war in Ukraine.

When Le Pen faced Macron in the 2017 run-off, the National Front candidate lost having garnered only 34 percent of the vote.

After meticulously rebranding the far-right party in a bid to attract more mainstream conservative voters, the leader of the newly renovated National Rally has refined her image, toned down her rhetoric and reconciled France's role within the European Union.

With all the spit-and-polish that has brought the National Rally into the heart of France's political mainstream, polling agencies expect her to offer Macron a much more serious challenge for the presidency than she did five years ago.

But many of Le Pen's detractors and opponents at a European level are unconvinced that her core external policies have changed.

Speaking on France Inter this Tuesdaymorning, LePen stressed that she hasno "secret agenda" forFrance to leave the European Union, even if her vocal attempts toreform the bloc fail.

However, she did underline that she believes "a large majority of French people no longer wantthe European Union as it exists today."

She continued by blasting theEuropean Unionthat she believes functions in "an absolutely undemocratic way, which advancesby threat, by blackmail and which implements policies that areagainst the interests of the people."

Although Marine Le Pen has ditched past plans to haul France out of the EU,the free-movement Schengen zone and the euro, her cynicism towards Brussels remains intact.

Ultimately, Le Pen envisages the EU as an alliance of memberstates, and when asked if she would leave the EU if all her attempts toreform the bloc failed, she replied: "Not at all."

The policies: what the second-round candidates, Le Pen and Macron, stand for

Macron backpedals on retirement age to appeal to working class voters on the left

For the outgoing president Emmanuel Macron, he will be seeking to refocus the agenda onEurope, insisting to his supporters - and the undecided electorate - thatLe Pen's policies wouldcreate a deep crisis within the European Union.

Le Pen won her 23.15percent behind Macron's 27.85percent by appealing directly to France's working class voters on the issues of purchasing power, energy prices and better living conditions.

Macron, who entered the campaign late, refused to engage in any debate and appeared to be aloof to the concerns of the people of France, with more international grandstanding over Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

Since Sunday's result, the incumbenthas come to terms with the fact that he has a lot of convincing to do on the ground between now and 24 April, to keep the electorate on his side and maintain his advantage as a president seeking re-election in a time of war and crisis in Europe.

Speaking to RFI this Tuesday, David Rachline went for Macron's jugular over his track record in giving the people of France a voice when it comes to the European Union.

"We areready for a debate on this subject," said Rachline, the Rassemblement National's vice-president. "[Macron] does not want to touch anything, to change anything, whereas the European Union must be re-founded. It must be profoundly reformed."

Rachline maintains that the French "want to be freer, more independent" and have theirdemocratic choices respected along with their partners in Europe.

It should be remarked that those partners include Germany's ultra-nationalistAfD, Italy's Lega party and of course excellent relations with Hungary's freshly re-elected Viktor Orban and Poland's Law and Justice administration under Andrzej Duda.

Within the European Union, the national control of immigration and security unites them.

But for the Rassemblement National, the party "wantsto engage in economic protectionism in order to save French companies and to better protect them," Rachline told RFI, adding there are two very different visions of the EU at playin the second round campaign.Macron want's to maintain Europe like "a sieve" while Le Penwants a Europe that "protects".

Le Pen insists that France'snational laws should prevail over European legislation, a move that has already seen Poland being sanctioned by the European Commission for doing the very same.

"The European Union must also bend to the will of the European people," Rachline insists. "[The EU]must at least take them into account, which is not the case today.

"This is also a major difference in vision between Emmanuel Macron and us. We want the European Union to finally take into account the voice of the European people."

But if a future "President Le Pen" marches to Brussels to renegotiate everything and isstone-walled by European institutions, what will the consequences be? Could it go as far as France's withdrawal from the EU,triggering a so-called "Frexit"if a far-right government in Paris doesn't get what it wants?

"Let's leave room for debate, let's leave room for this negotiation," Rachline replied inconclusively. "We want to have this debate. We want to set it up and negotiate ... We have a lot of European partners and groups within the European Parliament which will enable us to make these democratic choices tomorrow for the benefit of the European people."

However, when it comes to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, Le Pen's desire to pull out of the alliance's integrated command has rung alarm bells at NATO's HQ.

In what is styled as a selfless commitment for the French "to be no longer caught up in conflicts that are not ours", France remains the only European nuclear power within the alliance, and her previous close relations with Vladimir Putin haveprovoked particular concern.

Although Le Pen has outwardly condemned Putin's invasion of Ukraine, she has been hesitant on sanctioning Russian coal and gas supplies as it could have an adverse effect on French living standards.

It would appear over the next 10 days;Marine Le Pen will be unflinching when it comes to holding tight to her populist agenda.

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What might a Le Pen presidency mean for the future of the European Union? - RFI English

Fasset, a global digital asset gateway, has announced its entrance into the European Union (EU) after it secured a cryptocurrency authorisation. With the authorisation, Fasset will strengthen its global operations to serve the growing digital asset sector in the EU market and beyond.

Fasset previously secured three separate full authorisations from the Labuan Financial Services Authority and as part of the companys long-term growth strategy, this latest milestone will allow Fasset to bring its frictionless digital asset services to more retail and institutional investors across the world as it strengthens its presence globally.

Celebrating the achievement, Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Fasset Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, and former Advisor to the UAE Prime Ministers Office said: The digital asset sector has become an undeniable force in todays financial and technological landscape. The EU is a hotbed for crypto activity, with a number of member states leading the charge in both innovation and implementation.

With this licence, Fasset can continue on its mission of enabling greater access to crypto assets, bringing investors a step closer to the future of finance. The EU will serve as a cornerstone as we look to connect the remittance corridor between the West and the East.

EU global leader

The EU continues to be a global leader in digital asset adoption with Central, Northern and Western Europe outpacing all other regions to be the biggest cryptocurrency economy in the world. Representing a quarter of global cryptocurrency activity worth over $1 trillion, the EU is already an established hub for digital assets and a thriving market for growth and innovation in emerging technologies, playing an influential role in steering the future of finance.

Launched in 2019, Fasset is a multi-country digital asset gateway that aims to connect the next billion to buy, sell, send and store digital assets such as cryptocurrency and real-world asset tokens. Bringing easy, free, and frictionless access to digital assets, Fasset is providing people in frontier markets with the knowledge and the tools to build a better future.

A leader in asset tokenisation, Fasset built the worlds first comprehensive ecosystem dedicated to merging digital asset innovations with the real economy.

Previously partnering with Middle East fintech company Infinios (formerly known as NEC Payments), Fasset successfully completed the first Proof-of-Concept tokenisation of a Tesla charging unit in a move to accelerate progression of the electric vehicle (EV) industry in pursuit of creating a more sustainable future.-- TradeArabia News Service

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Fasset to expand crypto operations in European Union - Trade Arabia

The European Commission has announced a ban on Russian vessels and Russian-operated ships from accessing EU ports. The Commission did indicate there will be certain exemptions that will cover essentials, such as agricultural and food products, humanitarian aid as well as energy.

The Commission added it will propose a ban on Russian and Belarusian road transport operators. "This ban will drastically limit the options for the Russian industry to obtain key goods," said a spokesperson. The ban on Russian and Russian-operated vessels from EU ports is one of the six pillars of the fifth package of sanctions against Russia due to Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

"The four packages of sanctions have hit hard and limited the Kremlin's political and economic options. We are seeing tangible results. But clearly, in view of events, we need to increase our pressure further. Today, we are proposing to take our sanctions a step further. We will make them broader and sharper, so that they cut even deeper in the Russian economy," said president of the European Commission, von der Leyen.

The fifth package of EC sanctions also includes an import ban on coal from Russia worth 4 billion (US$4.3 billion) per year, a full transaction ban on four key Russian banks, further targeted export bans and specific new import bans worth 5.5 billion (US$5.9 billion).

"We are working on additional sanctions, including on oil imports, and we are reflecting on some of the ideas presented by the Member States, such as taxes or specific payment channels such as an escrow account," noted von der Leyen.

Source: container-news.com

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Ports of the European Union ban Russian vessels - FreshPlaza.com

France announced that two paintings featured in a recent hit exhibitionof a famed Russian art collection at Pariss Fondation Louis Vuitton will remain there until there is a change in the circumstances surrounding Russias invasion of Ukraine.

The two paintings are among some 200 masterpieces from the exhibition The Morozov Collection: Icons of Modern Art, which drew more than 1.2 million visitors by its close on April 3, having been extended from February 22. The bulk of the works on loan were set to return to museums in Russia.

France had resisted calls to seize the works to punish Russian President Vladimir Putin, who helped facilitate the show, and on April 8 the European Union (E.U.) issued a notice that cultural goods which are on loan in the context of formal cultural cooperation with Russia should be exempted from sanctions. But the French Ministry of Culture said on Saturday that two of the paintings will stay in France.

One of the works is a self-portrait by Pyotr Konchalovskythat is reportedly owned by the Russian oligarch and avid art collectorPetr Aven, who has been sanctioned by the E.U. and the U.K. over his alleged close ties with Putin, following Russias invasion of Ukraine. Aven has subsequently stepped down as a trustee of the Royal Academy. Tate has also severed ties with the billionaire, who was a member of Tates International Council and European Collection Circle of donors. The work will remain on French soil so long as its ownerremains targeted by an asset freeze, the ministry said in a statement cited by France 24 and Agence France-Presse. The ministry later confirmed the statement with Artnet News.

Head of LVMH luxury group Bernard Arnault (right) and French President Emmanuel Macron visit the opening of The Morozov Collection: Icons of Modern Art at Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris, on September 21, 2021. Photo: Yoan Valet/AFP via Getty Images.

Another work is said to be Valentin Serovs painting of Margarita Morozova, which belongs to the Dnipro Fine Arts Museum in Ukraine. The ministry said that the move to keep the painting was at the request of the Ukrainian authorities, and it will remain in France until the situation changes and the work can be returned safely.

A third painting from this collection, which is held by a private foundation, may stay, but the ministry said that it is still assessing the situation. The work in question, according to AFPs report, is said to belong to the Magma foundation, which has links to Viatcheslav Kantor, another U.K. sanction target.

Fondation Louis Vuitton declined to comment.

Artworks belonging to Russian oligarchs have been a focus since they were slapped with sanctions following the countrys ongoing aggression in Ukraine. Many of the sanctioned billionaires have had their assets seized or frozen, and they have also stepped down from some of the top Western cultural institutions that they used to serve as patrons or donors.

Aven, for example, recently told the Financial Timesthat he had been in talks to donate his art collection to an institution in the U.K., but now feared he would struggle to pay his bills.

Installation view of The Morozov Collection: Icons of Modern Art, at the Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris. Fondation Louis Vuitton/Marc Domage.

Works belonging to Russian museums, especially those have been loaned to institutions abroad, have faced varying treatments. South Korea has declined Russias request for an earlier return of 75 Modern Russian artworks on show in Seoul until April 17. Masterpieces from Russian museums that had been on loan to museums and galleries in Italy and Japan were seized in transit by Finnish authorities, citing the E.U. sanctions. On Friday, Finland said it would release them to Russia, in accordance with the E.U.s updated rule for cultural goods.

The Morozov collection was assembled by Mikhail (18701903) and Ivan Morozov (18711921), brothers from a textile-magnate family who acquired more than 250 works by top Impressionist and Modern masters in the West and Russia, ranging from Matisse, Monet, andCzanne to Picasso and Van Gogh. Mikhail died at the age of 33, while Ivan carried on building the collection.Their holdings were nationalized in 1918, nearly a year after the Russian Revolution began.Ivan Morozov was forced to flee and died in exile.

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The European Union Will Allow Loaned Artworks to Return to Russian Museums, But Two Paintings From a Paris Show Will Remain in France - artnet News