The Romanian Senate has supported the criminalisation of violations of EU sanctions in the country

This was reported by Digi24 on 11 November, according to European Pravda.

The project, initiated by the government, provides for up to 12 years' imprisonment for individuals and huge criminal fines for companies.

The normative act transposes Directive (EU) 2024/1226 into Romanian law, which establishes general rules at the European level for punishing those who violate the restrictive measures imposed by the Union. Romania is behind schedule in implementing the directive, which has a deadline of 20 May 2025.

The legislative proposal was adopted by the Senate by an overwhelming majority, with 110 votes in favour out of 121 senators present.

The bill will now go to the Chamber of Deputies, which is the decision-making body. Once promulgated, Romania will have legislation similar to that of other European Union countries in the field of economic sanctions.

Until now, violations of international sanctions in Romania were considered misdemeanours and were punishable by fines and confiscation of assets. Under the new law, these actions become criminal offences.

‘With this law, Romania is showing that it is a serious state that respects European commitments and supports the decisive application of international sanctions,’ explains the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in an explanatory note to the draft.

Source: European Pravda, Digi24