BREAKING NEWS

EU adds top Putin aide, two Crimea energy firms to sanctions list

BRUSSELS - The European Union imposed sanctions on Monday on a top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the commander of Russian paratroopers as well two confiscated Crimean energy companies, raising pressure on Moscow over its actions in Ukraine.
Putin's first deputy chief of staff, Vyacheslav Volodin, and Vladimir Shamanov, the commander of Russian airborne troops that took part in Russia's occupation of Ukraine's Crimea region in March, were among 13 people added to the EU's sanctions list.
Volodin, a wealthy former lawyer and veteran political strategist, is already on the U.S. sanctions list.
The latest additions bring to 61 the number of Russians and Ukrainians the EU has targeted with asset freezes and visa bans.
For the first time, the EU's latest sanctions list included two companies after EU foreign ministers agreed on Monday to broaden the scope of sanctions, making it easier to freeze the assets of companies involved in the Ukraine crisis.
The companies are a Crimea-based gas company, Chernomorneftegaz, and a Crimean oil supply company, Feodosia.