UK Sanctions Russian Spies

July 22, 2025

The British Foreign Office has also linked Russia’s intelligence agency to a cyber-sabotage campaign targeting institutions, elections, and public health programs across Europe and the US. The UK imposed sanctions on 18 officers and three units of Russia’s military intelligence agency for their roles in a 2022 airstrike on a theatre in Ukraine that killed hundreds of civilians.

British officials said the targeted personnel were responsible for the preparations that led to the bombing of the Mariupol Drama Theatre, where civilians were sheltering. Civilians inside had written the word ‘children’ in capital letters on the outside to deter the attacks.

In addition to their role in Ukraine, the officers are also accused of past operations, such as targeting the family of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, who was poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok along with his daughter in Salisbury in 2018.

The same unit is believed to have used malware to spy on the email account of Skripal’s daughter, Yulia, in 2013.

Authorities described Unit 26165 as a “highly sophisticated, established cyber actor” involved in intelligence gathering, hacking, and exfiltration operations against Ukraine, NATO, and European countries.

The unit has also been linked to cyberattacks against the Democratic Party in the US in 2016, French President Emmanuel Macron’s 2017 election campaign, and attempts to interfere with the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Another unit of the agency, Unit 74455, is said to have carried out cyberattacks against the UK Foreign Office and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory during the Skripal investigation.

The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre added that Russian hackers developed malware designed to gain unauthorized access to Microsoft cloud accounts.

Friday’s sanctions also targeted the Africa Initiative, which is alleged to have been used by Russian intelligence officers to conduct disinformation campaigns in Africa, and for its efforts to undermine public health programs and destabilize local governments.

While the immediate impact of the sanctions, which typically consist of asset freezes and travel bans, is limited, British officials said they were intended to increase the costs of engaging in hostile acts and restrict international travel.

Sanctioned people are: