The EU has imposed sanctions on three Russian officers.

The Council of the European Union has adopted additional restrictive measures against three Russians involved in the cyberattack on Estonia in 2020.

This is reported in a statement from the EU Council.

The sanctions target officers from the 29155 unit of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia: Nikolai Korchagin, Vitaliy Shevchenko, and Yuriy Denisov.

It is noted that during the cyberattacks, the Russians gained unauthorized access to classified information and confidential data stored in Estonia's ministries of economy, social affairs, and foreign affairs. Thousands of documents were stolen, including trade secrets, medical records, and other critically important data, which jeopardized the security of these institutions.

“The unit is known for its involvement in foreign assassinations and destabilization activities, such as bombings and cyberattacks across Europe, and some of its servicemen operating in Ukraine, Western Europe, and Africa were also sanctioned last year under a new sanctions regime due to Russia's destabilizing activities,” the EU Council stated.

The new sanctions include asset freezes, travel bans, and prohibitions for European individuals and organizations from providing funds to those included in the sanctions list.

“With today’s lists, the EU's horizontal cyber sanctions regime now extends to 17 individuals and 4 organizations,” the statement said.

Background. Previously, Mind reported that Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha emphasized the need to strengthen sanctions against Russia during his speech at the EU Foreign Ministers' Council on Monday, January 27.