Zelenskyy sanctions another 198 high-profile pro-Kremlin Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusian

Embattled Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday signed a decree to sanction as many as 198 Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian public figures reported Kyiv Independent that this decision will be made effective by the National Security and Defense Council. Notably, the list includes all those people, ranging from TV personalities to popular singers, who support Russian President Putin's decision to invade Ukraine.

The outlet reported that Ukraine has blacklisted pro-Kremlin journalist Diana Panchenko, who earlier worked for the TV channels of Putin's ally and business tycoon Viktor Medvedchuk. Medvedchuk was handed over to Russia in September 2022 as part of a prisoner exchange; she was charged with treason.

Why did Ukraine impose sanctions on high-profile people?

Ukraine imposed sanctions on Russian propagandist Serhii Sosedov, Russian blogger Semyon Pegov, Ukraine-born propaganda blogger Yuriy Podoliaka, and Yuri Loza, a Russian singer who supports the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It is worth noting that the latest decree is the second massive round of sanctions against Putin supporters. Earlier on January 7, similar sanctions were imposed by Zelenskyy on at least 119 Russian and pro-Russian Ukrainian public figures. During the first round of sanctions imposed by Ukraine, Zelenskyy had said that more Russian citizens and those affiliated with Moscow would be blacklisted for justifying the war (against Ukraine), helping to wage it, or "glorifying the terrorist state."

He added that "everyone whose voice sounds in unison with the roar of Russian artillery will be isolated from the civilised world."

Ukraine reports a new wave of strikes on its power grid

This development comes as Ukraine reported multiple attacks on critical infrastructure facilities across the country on Saturday. According to media reports, the Saturday strike has forced emergency power outages in several regions of the country, said Energy Minister German Galushchenko. "There were hits in Kharkiv, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Zaporizhzhia, Vinnytsia, and the Kyiv region," said Galushchenko. "The next few days will be difficult," he warned.

Meanwhile, in Ukraine, two thermal power stations (TPS) witnessed massive damage, according to the country's largest private energy operator, DTEK. This isn't the first time that the energy infrastructure was damaged said the company with specifying exactly which power stations have been affected.

Image: AP