Why has the EU sanctioned Indian, Chinese companies for Russia links?

The latest sanctions, coinciding with the anniversary of the Ukraine war, touch New Delhi, Beijing for the first time.

A day before the two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the European Union released an exhaustive new list of companies, entities or people in countries including Russia, India, Iran, China and Syria, that it said it was sanctioning over allegations that they were connected to Russia’s defence and security sector.

The new sanctions added 27 new entities to a list of more than 600 that were already facing EU bans and restrictions.

But the additions included companies in mainland China and India for the first time, targeting entities in the countries that have been the biggest buyers of Russian fossil fuels since the Kremlin launched its full-fledged war on Ukraine in February 2022.

Here’s more about the new sanctions, who they target, why these companies have been sanctioned, how China, India and Russia have responded – and why all of this matters.

While 619 of the 641 entities on the 27-nation bloc’s sanction list are in Russia, a handful of entities from other countries are also on the sanctions register. These include:

Besides Russian companies, the sanctions are also against Russian officials, including judiciary members, local politicians and people the EU said were “responsible for the illegal deportation and military re-education of Ukrainian children”.

Most international companies were sanctioned by the EU in June 2023. Only 27 of the entities on the list were first announced to be sanctioned on Friday.

The foreign companies have been sanctioned over allegations that they have exported dual-use goods to Russia that could be used in its war against Ukraine. A dual-use item is