KIEV, November 18. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky put into effect the decision of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) on sanctions against 23 Russian citizens and five Ukrainians. A corresponding decree was published on the website of the president’s office on Thursday.

"[I hereby decree] to activate the August 20, 2021 decision of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council on applying personal special economic and other restrictive measures (sanctions)," the decree said.

According to an addendum to the decree, the sanctions list includes Russian citizens Alexander Zhmakov, Alexei Kapinos, Andrei Makarov and a number of others as well as Ukrainian citizens registered in the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions.

On August 20, Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council made a decision to introduce sanctions against a number of private individuals and legal entities. According to the Ukrainian president’s office, this list includes the generals of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, as well as Crimean judges who oversee lawsuits against Ukrainian citizens. The NSDC also imposed restrictive measures against non-affiliated Verkhovna Rada legislator Andrei Derkach and other individuals under US sanctions.

After the coup d’etat in Ukraine in February 2014, Crimea and Sevastopol held a referendum, in which 96.7% of Crimeans and 95.6% of Sevastopol voters chose to secede from Ukraine and join Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the reunification deal on March 18, 2014, which the Federation Council (upper house of the Russian parliament) ratified on March 21, 2014. Despite the convincing results of the referendum, Kiev has refused to recognize Crimea as part of Russia.