Ukraine bans travel of 1,700 Russian citizens – NSDC

Ukraine began to impose sanctions or restrictive measures on Russian individuals and legal entities in March 2014, the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) has reported.

"First of all, under a NSDC decision, Ukraine terminated military-technological cooperation, as well as interaction in the defense and security fields with the Russian Federation. The Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers, the Defense Ministry, the Ukrainian Security Service and intelligence agencies of Ukraine renounced agreements with relevant Russian agencies and stopped cooperation in those spheres," the NSDC report said.

For instance, Ukraine stopped the maintenance of missile systems manufactured by the Pivdenmash plant.

"Military and dual-use transit across the territory and the airspace of Ukraine was discontinued," it said.

The trade turnover between Ukraine and Russia fell almost four-fold since 2013, it said.

Ukrainian law enforcement authorities launched a number of criminal inquiries against Russian officials.

"Besides, over 1,700 Russian citizens are banned from travelling to Ukraine. It is possible to cross into Ukraine from the Russian territory only with international passports," it said.

On September 2, 2015, NSDC backed the decision of the Ukrainian government and the Ukrainian Security Service to expand sanctions on individuals and legal entities of Russia and some other countries. "This decision will soon be enforced by a decree of the Ukrainian president," the report said.