Unfriendly countries list

Following the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 and international sanctions imposed against Russia, the list has since been expanded to 49 states.

[3] In June 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law empowering the government to introduce countermeasures against countries determined to have engaged in "unfriendly" actions against Russia.

The countermeasures listed included import and export restrictions, suspension or termination of international cooperation, or privatization of state assets.

[5] In April 2021, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova announced that Russia would be publishing an "unfriendly countries list" that included the United States.

[3] On 22 July 2022, Russia added Croatia, Denmark, Greece, Slovakia and Slovenia individually to the list, separate from the European Union.

The Russian Cabinet's website said, "Eleven more British Overseas Territories have been added to the list that supported the sanctions imposed by the UK on Russia.

[13] The legal basis for instituting sanctions against countries deemed "unfriendly" to Russia was initially passed in June 2018 with a menu of available countermeasures, including import and export restrictions, suspension or termination of international cooperation, or privatization of state assets, but no specific targets were listed.

However, Russia still faced a risk that dollar or euro energy payments stored in these banks might also be frozen there in a future SWIFT ban extension.

[17] The European Union, which was added to the list, relied on Russia for 40% of its natural gas imports, and forcing payments in rubles could help to inflate the demand for and value of the currency.

[16] Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree introducing visa restrictions for citizens from "unfriendly countries," a decision made in retaliation to hostile measures taken by the European Union, the Kremlin said on 4 April 2022.

According to the decree, Russia will partially suspend its simplified visa agreements with EU member countries along with Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

[25] August 2023 saw Russia pass a decree barring foreign investors from unfriendly countries from holding investments in major Russian businesses.

The businesses were not specified but would include important banks and firms above a specific size when considering revenue, assets employees, or taxes paid.