UK slaps fresh sanctions on 14 Russians, including ministers

The British government slapped new sanctions on 14 Russian individuals on Monday, including two ministers and a human rights chief in Moscow, for what it called "forced deportation" of Ukrainian children and attempts to "destroy Ukrainian national identity."

The UK government blamed 11 Russians, including Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova, Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov, and Commissioner for Children's Rights Ksenia Mishonova, for the "forced deportation" of Ukrainian children and sanctioned them with asset freezes and travel bans, said a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry.

Britain sanctioned 14 people for "Russia's attempts to destroy Ukrainian national identity," 11 of whom it said were involved in the forcible relocation of children.

The announcement comes ahead of British Foreign Secretary James Celeverly's speech to the UN Security Council, where he will "highlight the far-reaching implications of Russia's war, call on Russia to renew the Black Sea Grain Initiative, and outline the need for a just, lasting peace in Ukraine."

The UK government accused these Russians of playing a role in alleged deportations "designed to erase Ukrainian cultural and national identity."

Britain claimed that over 19,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly deported to Russia or temporarily Russian-controlled territory by the authorities in Moscow.

"Many deported children are relocated to a network of re-education camps in illegally annexed Crimea and mainland Russia, where they are exposed to Russia-centric academic, cultural, patriotic, and military education," the statement said.

Since the Russian war in Ukraine began in February last year, the UK has sanctioned over 1,600 individuals and entities, including 29 banks with global assets worth £1 trillion (approximately $1.31 trillion), over 130 oligarchs with a combined net worth of more than £145 billion (about $190 billion), and over £20 billion (about $26.1 billion) in UK-Russia trade.