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Highlights
- In a historic move, Finland has agreed to supply weapons to Ukraine.
- Turkey has blocked the passage of Russian warships in the Black Sea. Switzerland restricts banks from taking on new business with EU-blacklisted entities.
- BP and Shell exited from joint ventures with Russia’s Gazprom PJSC.
In a historic move, Finland has agreed to supply weapons to Ukraine, while Turkey has blocked the passage of Russian warships in the Black Sea heading for the conflict zone.
Finland said it would send defense equipment, such as bulletproof vests and ammunition, and medical care to Ukraine, which has been under Russian attack. Finland, a member of the European Union, has a partnership with the US military alliance without being a NATO partner.
Finland Defence Minister Antti Kaikkonen has dubbed the government decision as a historic step since the country has a long-standing policy of not allowing weapons exports to war zones.
Finland also shares its border with Russia.
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Help from other countries has also poured in for Ukraine over the weekend. Turkey said it blocked the passage of Russian warships in its territorial waters in the Black Sea. It said it had used the powers granted under the 1936 Montreux Convention to stop the battleships.
Turkey, a NATO member, has shared a close relationship with Moscow in recent years. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the Ukraine invasion is ‘unacceptable’.
He said Turkey’s action in the Black Sea is to prevent further crisis escalation.
Switzerland has joined the European Union in sanctions against Russia on Monday. It restricted its banks from taking on new business with the EU-blacklisted entities. Switzerland also said it would immediately freeze any assets of the Russian president or ministers held in the country.
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BP, Shell snap ties with Gazprom
Meanwhile, many companies, including BP plc and Shell plc, have snapped ties with Russian oil and gas majors like Gazprom PJSC and Rosneft.
Shell said it would exit from its joint ventures with Gazprom, while BP said it is divesting its stake in Rosneft, a state-owned oil producer.
The NYSE and NASDAQ stock exchanges have also stopped trading in Russian stocks after new US sanctions as they evaluated the compliance requirements.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday urged the European Union again to allow Ukraine to join the EU, although it isn’t going to be easy now. Ukraine’s EU membership has been a thorny issue for Russia. Finally, the fate of its membership will rest on whether the EU and the US can broker a deal with Russia. But first, Moscow must return to talks. Meanwhile, EU leaders have extended all support to Ukraine’s independence.
