The British government has announced a fresh package of sanctions aimed at tightening pressure on Russia’s war economy, targeting what ministers describe as “backdoor sanctions evasion” networks and illicit financial channels used to bypass Western restrictions.
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said the measures would focus on dismantling the infrastructure Russia uses to move funds, procure goods and sustain its military operations despite existing sanctions.
“The UK is adapting and strengthening our approach to target the evolving tactics Russia is using to evade restrictions,” she said in a statement on May 26.
“We are going after the infrastructure that underpins its war economy at the same time as Ukraine is increasing the pressure on Russia on the battlefield.”
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The latest package includes 18 new designations targeting individuals and entities linked to what the government described as Russia’s illicit financial architecture.
Officials said the measures are intended to disrupt crypto-enabled transfers, shadow payment systems and intermediary networks that have helped Moscow access restricted goods and sustain defence production.
A central focus of the sanctions is the so-called A7 network, which monitoring groups have described as a political and commercial structure designed to facilitate large-scale sanctions evasion.
The Centre for Information Resilience, a UK-based monitoring organisation, has linked the network to efforts to bypass restrictions on financial flows connected to Russia’s defence sector.
The A7 network was established in 2024 and is led by Israeli-Moldovan businessman Ilan Shor, who was convicted in connection with Moldova’s 2014 banking fraud scandal involving the disappearance of around $1 billion from three banks.
Promsvyazbank, a Russian state-owned lender that supports the country’s defence industry and is itself under UK sanctions, is reported to hold a minority stake in the network.
Shor was granted Russian citizenship in 2024.
Ukraine has already imposed its own sanctions on the A7 network, warning earlier this year that it was being used to facilitate payments linked to the procurement of components for Russian missile production.
Kyiv has been pressing Western allies to expand coordinated action against such networks, arguing that Russia has increasingly shifted to complex, multi-jurisdictional systems to evade financial restrictions.
The UK government said the latest measures were part of an ongoing effort to “stay ahead of Russian evasion” and cut off the financial routes supporting Moscow’s war effort.
The announcement comes less than a week after the government faced criticism over adjustments to certain energy-related sanctions, including allowances affecting liquefied natural gas imports from Russian-linked facilities and refined fuel purchases via third countries.
Ministers maintain that the overall sanctions regime remains robust, while acknowledging that Russia’s adaptation to restrictions has required continual tightening of enforcement and scope.
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