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Anti-Russian sanctions

EU sanctions on Russia’s Megafon won’t harm business, telecom provider says

Megafon said the latest restrictions don’t affect telecom services, including roaming services

© Valery Sharifulin/TASS

MOSCOW, February 26. /TASS/. The new EU restrictions on telecom provider Megafon are similar to export controls by the US and won’t harm the business and subscribers, the company told TASS on Saturday.

"The new inputs by the EU are identical to US export controls and don’t stipulate any really harmful restrictions for the business and subscribers," the company said in response to a request for comment.

Megafon said the latest restrictions don’t affect telecom services, including roaming services. It said the limits ban supplies of dual-purpose equipment to the company.

"The decision by EU officials will only affect the commitments that were taken by European equipment suppliers, however, we don’t see any substantial impact from them on the business of our company," Megafon’s press service said.

"We see that we were included in the EU lists as if we were copied from yesterday’s US list of export controls. We still don’t understand either the motives or the reasons for this step and are exploring opportunities to challenge this decision," the press service said, adding that the company continues to study the possible consequences of this restriction on its activities.

The European Union on Saturday put into effect the 10th package of sanctions on Russia, placing restrictions on 87 individuals and 34 entities. A day before, the US Department of Commerce expanded sanctions against Russia and Belarus, including export controls. The US Department of Commerce blacklisted 76 organizations from the Russian Federation, as well as companies from other countries. Export restrictions affected Megafon, among other companies.

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