What's in the 9th package of EU sanctions against Russia?

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The European Union imposed its ninth sanctions package on Russia on Friday, prohibiting citizens to hold governing posts in companies owned by the Russian state, the European Council said on Friday.

"As of today EU nationals will be forbidden from holding any posts on the governing bodies of all Russian State-owned or controlled legal persons, entities or bodies located in Russia," the press release read.

The European Union has a ban in place on certain consulting services to Russia.

The 27-nation bloc explained that its new decision bans the provision of EU advertising, market research and public opinion polling services, product testing, and technical inspection services for Russia and Russian-state-controlled companies.

This comes a little more than a week after the EU imposed a new package of sanctions on Russia, which involved banning the broadcasting of four channels and the control over the export of dual-usage goods worth more than 2.3 billion euros ($2.4 billion).

"In order to address the Russian Federation's systematic, international campaign of disinformation and information manipulation intended to destabilize its neighboring countries, the EU and its member states, the Council initiated the process for suspending the broadcasting licenses of four additional media outlets: NTV/NTV Mir, Rossiya 1, REN TV and Pervyi Kanal," the EU body said Friday.

Though Brussels explained that the measures in question would not prevent the media outlets in question nor their staff from performing their duties in the EU other than broadcasting, explaining that the sanctions would still allow them to conduct research and interviews, among other things.

The sanctions package will also involve a ban on transactions with Russian marketing firms and market research firms, according to the newspaper.

The decision came alongside a similar ban prohibiting investments in the Russian mining sector, with the sole exception of activities related to key raw materials.

"The EU will expand the prohibition targeting new investments in the Russian energy sector by additionally prohibiting new investments in the Russian mining sector, with the exception of mining and quarrying activities involving certain critical raw materials," the council's statement read.

The Financial Times newspaper reported last week that the EU would be proposing a ban on investments in the Russian mining sector, adding that there would be an exception on certain goods.

2 Russian banks to have assets frozen

Though previous reports said there would be a ban on transactions with three Russian banks, the EU body froze the assets of two Russian banks and a complete transaction ban on the Russian Regional Development Bank.

"The EU will impose an asset freeze against two additional Russian banks and add the Russian Regional Development Bank to the list of Russian State-owned or controlled entities that are subject to a full transaction ban," the EU said.

The Foreign Ministers of Estonia, Lithuania, and Poland called on the EU to hasten the process for the 9th round of sanctions against Russia, the Foreign Minister of Estonia Urmas Reinsalu said in a tweet earlier in the month. 

The ministers further said they welcomed EU President Ursula von Der Leyen's statement that the EU was expeditiously working on the next round of sanctions against Russia.