The General Court of the European Union in Luxembourg confirmed that the sanctions and freezing of the assets of Russia's state defense company Almaz-Antey are in accordance with the law.

"In today's decision the court rejected the claim of Almaz-Antey and thus, supported the freezing of the company’s assets," the statement of the Court reads.

The court noted that "the freezing of funds of such entities can achieve the goal of preventing the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine."

According to the Court, by sanctioning specific Russian enterprises, the EU has the right to expect that the actions of the Russian Federation "will stop or become more expensive for those who commit them and this will contribute to a peaceful settlement of the crisis in Ukraine."

Also, it was explained that the Almaz-Antey produces anti-aircraft weapons, in particular, "ground-to-air" missiles," which were supplied to the Russian Army" and, in turn, "by the authorities of the Russian Federation to the separatists in eastern Ukraine," which contributed to the destabilization of the situation in the country.

The court also noted that the EU Council which has imposed sanctions on the company is not required to provide direct evidence of the fact that the weapons they produced were used by separatists. The court believes that when it comes to armed conflict, it is difficult to establish liability and track the type of weapons used by the parties.

  Russia, Sanctions, Ukraine

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