Lithuanian minister says country backs proposal to punish those violating EU sanctions

VILNIUS – Lithuania supports the proposal to punish those violating EU sanctions, Justice Minister Ewelina Dobrowolska said on Tuesday after meeting with her Estonian counterpart Kalle Laanet.

The two ministers discussed legal cooperation and legal assistance, possible ways to consolidate the Baltic states' legal moves in the context of the military aggression against Ukraine, and also talked about restrictions Russian citizens, the Justice Ministry said.

The Baltic ministers discussed legal mechanisms and possibilities for the use of frozen assets of Russia and its entities to compensate for damages and to rebuild Ukraine. 

According to Dobrowolska, the sooner the Baltic states and Europe as a whole consolidate their united efforts to pursue all possible formats of justice to bring the aggressor to justice, the more effective will be the restoration of justice.

The Lithuanian and Estonian justice ministers agreed to strengthen the Baltic states' position at the level of cooperation within the EU as the situation in Ukraine has a major impact on EU policy-making, especially in the field of justice, the statement reads.

Lithuania also supports the draft directive on asset recovery and confiscation, which aims to establish clear rules on asset tracing and identification, promoting cross-border cooperation, Dobrowolska said.

She hopes the new directive will ensure a uniform level of enforcement across the EU and deter attempts to circumvent or violate EU measures.

Lithuania and Estonia are among the ten EU member states that support the initiative to expand the powers of the European Public Prosecutor's Office to investigate violations of EU restrictive measures.