The United Kingdom has announced fresh sanctions on 90 entities, including Indian refiner Nayara Energy Limited, in its latest bid to curb Russian oil revenues and weaken President Vladimir Putin’s war funding. The sanctions, unveiled jointly by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the UK Treasury, aim to disrupt networks supporting Moscow’s crude exports amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. According to the FCDO, the new restrictions are intended to “strike at the heart of Putin’s war funding” by targeting firms and assets that enable Russia’s energy trade. “Today’s action demonstrates the government’s determination to cut off Putin’s revenue streams, targeting Russian companies and their global enablers,” the statement said. The sanctions list includes four oil terminals in China, 44 tankers belonging to the so-called “shadow fleet” used to transport Russian crude, and India’s Nayara Energy, which London claims imported around 100 million barrels of Russian oil worth more than Rs 416 billion (USD 5 billion) in 2024. The UK government also imposed measures directly on Russian energy giants Rosneft and Lukoil — two of the world’s largest oil exporters — which together ship about 3.1 million barrels of crude per day. Rosneft alone accounts for nearly half of Russia’s oil output and roughly six per cent of global production. “At this critical moment for Ukraine, Europe is stepping up. Together, the UK and our allies are piling pressure on Putin, going after his oil, gas, and shadow fleet, and we will not relent until he ends his failed war of conquest,” said UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper while announcing the sanctions in Parliament. The announcement coincides with the Russian Energy Week conference in Moscow, where Putin is expected to promote his country’s energy exports to non-Western buyers. The FCDO said the timing was deliberate, aimed at undermining the Kremlin’s efforts to secure new markets. To further limit Russian oil revenues, the UK also announced a ban on imports of petroleum products refined in third countries from Russian-origin crude. Nayara Energy — which operates India’s second-largest private oil refinery at Vadinar in Gujarat and is partly owned by Russia’s Rosneft — has previously faced scrutiny from Western nations for its purchases of Russian crude. The company, however, maintains that it operates within Indian laws and supports national energy security. “Nayara Energy operates in full compliance with the laws and regulations of India. As an Indian company, we are deeply committed to supporting the nation’s energy security and fostering economic growth,” it said in a statement. The company dismissed the European Union’s earlier sanctions as “baseless” and “an undue extension of authority.” In addition to targeting Nayara and Russian oil entities, the UK sanctions also cover companies across Thailand, Singapore, Turkiye, and China that are allegedly part of Russia’s military supply chain, providing electronic components used in drones and missiles against Ukraine.