The UK government has imposed its most extensive package of sanctions to date, targeting nearly 300 entities, including the oil pipeline operator Transneft, to coincide with the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The government announced on Tuesday that Transneft, one of the world’s largest pipeline firms responsible for transporting over 80 per cent of Russia’s crude exports, was specifically targeted to further diminish Moscow’s energy revenues.
“The UK has today taken decisive action to disrupt the critical financing, military equipment and revenue streams that sustain Russia’s aggression,” foreign minister Yvette Cooper said in a statement.
This latest round of penalties brings the total number of individuals, companies, and ships sanctioned under Britain’s Russia regime to more than 3,000. Tuesday’s package also included 48 oil tankers, identified as part of ongoing efforts to curb Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet.”
London asserts that its sanctions are intensifying pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin, claiming that his war effort is faltering and government revenues are in free fall.
Analysis by the nonprofit Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air indicated that Russia earned 193 billion euros ($227 billion) from oil, gas, coal, and refined product exports in the 12 months to February 24, 2026, marking a 27 per cent drop from the comparable period before the invasion.
Russia’s gas exports have collapsed since 2022, but sanctions have not reduced its oil export volumes; instead, they have pushed Moscow to sell crude at lower prices.
Russia has also redirected crude to China, India and Turkey, often using the shadow fleet of ageing, uninsured tankers.
Western governments have targeted those tankers, but “deterring, disrupting and degrading” them remained a priority, Britain said.
In its Tuesday sanctions package, Britain targeted what it described as Russia’s dark-web oil networks, sanctioning 175 companies in the Dubai-based 2Rivers group, saying it was one of the world’s largest shadow-fleet operators and a major trader of Russian crude.
2Rivers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
US President Donald Trump has pushed India to shift away from Russian crude as a condition of a trade deal, while the European Union is debating a broader ban on business supporting Russia’s seaborne crude trade.
On Monday, the European Union failed to agree to its 20th sanctions package against Russia after Hungary maintained its veto on Russia and a 90 billion euro loan for Ukraine amid a dispute over oil supplies.
