The Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for International Cultural Cooperation Mikhail Shvydkoi. Photo credit: kremlin.ru / fragment (CC BY 4.0)
The scale of European sanctions in the cultural and humanitarian sphere is much larger than the restrictions that were in place during the Cold War. Mikhail Shvydkoi, Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for International Cultural Cooperation, commented on the new, 7th, package of European sanctions, TASS reports.
On July 21, the European Union approved the 7th package of anti-Russian sanctions. The document introduces a partial embargo on gold, expands the list of prohibited dual-use goods, as well as blacklists 55 organizations and individuals. In addition, the package extends the current sanctions for six months, until the end of January 2023.
The sanctions list includes, in particular, the Russkiy Mir Foundation, Rossotrudnichestvo, Sberbank, the military-patriotic movement Yunarmiya, the Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Foundation. The head of the Night Wolves motorcycle club Alexander Zaldostanov, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, children's ombudsman Maria Lvova-Belova and others were also subject to sanctions.
Never before have sanctions extended to the humanitarian sphere, Mikhail Shvydkoy recalled. In addition, cultural figures and organizers who are engaged in expanding the dialogue between peoples fell under various restrictions.
Shvydkoy called these decisions erroneous. This proves that Europe is not going to restore relations and any dialogue either with the Russian government or civil society.
Russkiy Mir
