China has sanctioned two European Union banks, fulfilling its promise to retaliate after the bloc targeted Chinese lenders over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Bloomberg reports.
The Ministry of Commerce said Wednesday that UAB Urbo Bankas and AB Mano Bankas were added to China’s countermeasure list. The designation bars organizations and individuals in China from engaging in transactions, cooperation, or other activities with the sanctioned institutions.
In a separate statement, the ministry urged the EU to “cherish its relationship with China, correct its wrongdoing and stop harming the nation’s interests.”
The sanctions come in response to EU measures last month, which targeted two Chinese banks and five companies for allegedly providing cryptocurrency services that undermined sanctions against Moscow.
China’s close economic and financial ties with Russia have previously exposed its banks to US sanctions, prompting state-owned lenders to re-evaluate clients and curb funding to Russian entities after secondary sanctions were authorized.
Tensions between China and the EU have been rising in recent years, fueled in part by Beijing’s support for Russia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. Relations with individual EU nations, such as Lithuania, have also been strained; last year, Lithuania expelled Chinese embassy staff, leading China to downgrade diplomatic ties in retaliation for Vilnius hosting a Taiwan representative office.
Bloomberg notes that the latest sanctions are part of a broader pattern of Beijing responding assertively to Western financial restrictions, signaling ongoing friction in China-EU relations.
