UK and EU impose coordinated sanctions over alleged Russian cyber attacks.
Sanctions target Russia's FSB, GRU and state-linked cyber actors across Europe.
Western allies cite attacks on critical infrastructure and the Paris 2024 Olympics.
London and Brussels launched coordinated sanctions against Moscow on Monday following a series of digital strikes across Europe. Western officials warned that Russia has intensified its "hybrid" campaign to disrupt European stability more than four years after invading Ukraine. The joint measures target the Russian FSB intelligence agency for its role in the cyber attacks, AFP reported.
Brussels blacklisted nine individuals and four organisations. Meanwhile, London expanded its sanctions list by 24 names. The British government stated to AFP that the sanctions—the first joint cyber package with the EU—"target the Russian state's persistent and increasingly reckless attempts to sow chaos and division across Europe".
Infrastructure and Olympics
The EU and Britain identified a recent attempted cyber attack targeting critical infrastructure in Poland, including the power grid, linked to the FSB's Centre 16 spying hub.
"This reckless attack failed but could have caused 500,000 citizens to lose electricity in the depths of winter," the British foreign office stated to AFP. "It is another example of the Russian state's irresponsible attempts to sow chaos across Europe."
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Paris will summon the Russian ambassador in the coming days. The digital strikes aimed to steal data or disrupt services, Barrot said. He added that the operations targeted state ministries, private firms and utility providers, pointing to Polish rail networks as an example.
The French foreign ministry informed AFP that the sanctioned targets included "a group that claimed destabilising actions against the Paris 2024 Olympics".
Broad European Campaign
The asset freezes and visa bans target officers of Russia's GRU military intelligence agency and alleged state-linked cybercriminals.
The EU stated to AFP that targeted nations include France, Germany, Poland, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Austria, Slovakia, Romania and Finland in a campaign stretching back years.
Western intelligence agencies have previously accused the FSB's Centre 16 of using malware for decades to spy globally. Britain and the EU—which London left in 2020—have led efforts to punish Moscow with sanctions since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
