President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Vasyl Maliuk, Head of the Foreign Intelligence Service Oleh Ivashchenko, Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha, and Advisor – Commissioner of the President for Sanctions Policy Vladyslav Vlasiuk to discuss the main directions of Ukraine’s ongoing sanctions efforts.
The Head of State noted that Ukraine will soon synchronize, within its jurisdiction, the 19th EU sanctions package and U.S. sanctions against two of Russia’s largest oil companies. In addition, it is important to expand sanctions against the shadow fleet.
“According to all our data, around 610 shadow-fleet tankers have been sanctioned. We estimate that over 1,500 various vessels work for Russia and therefore work for the war. Of these, around 340 are key ships, and 65 form the core. These are the targets we still need to sanction,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.
According to the President, Ukraine also expects to work closely with the United States to minimize Russian energy exports as much as possible.
The Head of State stressed the importance of intelligence and military work to reduce Russian production of drones and military equipment. According to him, the Russian military-industrial complex is planning to increase production of FPV and other drones, glide bombs, artillery, and mortars. In the meantime, thanks to imposed sanctions and a shortage of components, Russia currently lacks the capacity to scale up missile production. Ukraine expects sanctions pressure that will prevent increases in other types of weapons production.
The meeting also addressed the Russian ballistic missile Oreshnik. Vasyl Maliuk reported that, as a result of a joint operation by the Security Service of Ukraine, the Foreign Intelligence Service, and the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, one Oreshnik was destroyed at the Kapustin Yar testing range. The President stressed the importance of imposing sanctions against 25 companies assisting the Russian Federation in producing this missile.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs reported that work has already begun on the 20th EU sanctions package. Ukraine has submitted its proposals and continues compiling further evidence for a robust package.
According to international experts, the economic impact of the 19th EU sanctions package will be around USD 20 billion, and combined with U.S. sanctions, approximately a USD 50 billion loss for Russia.
He noted that work is underway in three directions: restricting Russian companies’ access to technologies, reducing Kremlin revenues to fund the war, and imposing personal sanctions on Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.
Vasyl Maliuk reported that in September–October, six refineries, two oil terminals, three storage bases, and nine pumping stations in Russia were struck. The Head of the SSU added that this has created a shortage of petroleum products in Russia’s domestic market across 57 regions.
“Their Pantsir systems are the most effective against our long-range drones. So here’s the thing: from the start of 2025 until today, we have destroyed 48% of the enemy’s Pantsirs. This is a current priority, set by the President of Ukraine. They produce 30 per year, but the number we’ve destroyed far exceeds their production. That’s what we are working on,” the Head of the SSU stated.
Oleh Ivashchenko reported that among the priorities of the Foreign Intelligence Service are identifying vulnerabilities in the Russian economy, energy sector, banking and financial system, and military-industrial complex, as well as exposing sanctions evasion schemes.
“Our work with partners is quite effective. Our shared goal is to limit the enemy’s ability to wage war,” he emphasized.
Vladyslav Vlasiuk summarized that since the beginning of the year, Ukraine has already issued over 50 sanctions decrees against Russia.
“No other country has such a pace of sanctions work. We see significant incorporation of our proposals into partners’ sanctions. In addition, it is very promising to link kinetic sanctions with classical ones,” the Presidential Commissioner added.
Vladyslav Vlasiuk also noted that after Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil facilities, the enemy has to source materials and equipment for repairs, and sanctions continually complicate this process.
“So, the main directions of our further sanctions work are: partner sanctions, to which we provide proposals; our own sanctions, which in many cases align with those of other European countries; and our long-range sanctions, which act directly and most rapidly,” the President concluded.