Yvette Cooper announced 100 new UK sanctions on Russia on Friday as she made her first visit to Kyiv as foreign secretary, saying the measures aim to increase economic pressure on Moscow to deny funds it needs for the war in Ukraine.
Cooper, who was moved from the home office to the foreign office in a cabinet reshuffle last week, arrived in Kyiv by rail and was greeted with flowers by her Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha. The new measures target Moscow's military and energy sectors, include restrictions on firms supplying electronics, chemicals and explosives used in weapons production, and name 70 vessels said to be part of Russia's so-called "shadow fleet."
"The UK will not stand idly by as [Russian President Vladimir] Putin continues his barbaric invasion of Ukraine," Cooper said, adding that the UK seeks to "cut off critical cash flows, which he desperately needs to pay for this illegal war." She said the sanctions form the next stage of the UK's efforts to ramp up economic pressure alongside security support and work with the "Coalition of the Willing for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine."
The foreign office said the package includes measures aimed at companies that supply equipment used to manufacture missiles and other weapons, and at vessels alleged to have illicitly carried cargo since the start of the war. The announcements come amid a new wave of Russian aerial attacks that Western officials and Kyiv say have intensified in recent days.
British officials cited a recent assault in which more than 800 missiles and drones were fired in a single night — described by the foreign office as the largest aerial attack in the war in the last fortnight — and said Moscow's actions had undermined international peace efforts. On Sunday, Moscow carried out what Ukraine and Western officials called the largest aerial attack on the country since the conflict began; that raid struck a key government building in Kyiv for the first time. Cooper plans to visit the damaged cabinet building and residential areas hit by strikes during her trip, the foreign office said.
The visit also follows incidents earlier in the week in which drones linked to the Russian offensive were shot down after violating Polish airspace, prompting concern among NATO allies. Cooper said such incidents illustrated Russia's "complete disregard for sovereignty." She urged continued international action to increase economic pressure on Moscow.
The UK has regularly imposed sanctions on Russian individuals, companies and sectors since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This latest tranche joins a series of measures from Western governments intended to disrupt supply chains and financial networks that officials say enable Russia's war effort. Kyiv has repeatedly sought stronger sanctions and additional security assistance from allies as it continues to defend against sustained attacks.
Cooper's trip to Kyiv marks her first overseas diplomatic visit since taking up the foreign secretary role and signals continued high-level UK engagement with Ukraine amid the renewed violence. The foreign office did not provide an exhaustive list of the entities named in the package but said the action would make it harder for Russia to procure and move goods and revenue to sustain its military operations.