Work to begin on EU 'Magnitsky Act'

• We have agreed to launch the preparatory work for a global sanctions regime to address serious human rights violations.
• "Some member states who were opposing have abandoned the opposition and joined the broader consensus," Borrell explained.
• Washington has used the act to slap tough sanctions on dozens of senior Russian officials, blocking them from visiting the United States.

BRUSSELS: The EU on Monday agreed to start work on a sanctions framework to punish human rights abusers anywhere in the world, along the lines of the US Magnitsky Act.

The bloc's new diplomatic chief Josep Borrell said the move would give the EU "much more strength and much more capacity to act", making it a more significant force on the world stage.

The EU can already impose penalties for human rights violations, but it is usually done within sanctions frameworks linked to conflicts or crises such as Ukraine.

"We have agreed to launch the preparatory work for a global sanctions regime to address serious human rights violations, which will be the European Union equivalent of the so-called Magnitsky Act of the United States," Borrell told reporters.

The new framework would allow the EU to identify rights abusers and freeze their assets in Europe and ban them from travelling to the bloc.

The EU's diplomatic service will begin work drawing up the plans, which will then have to go through various committees before coming back to ministers for final approval.

No timetable has been set but diplomats said the new framework could be ready next year.

However, unanimous approval by the member states will be needed for the regime to take effect and some countries, including Greece, Cyprus and Italy, have voiced reservations, though Borrell said there was enough agreement to start the process.

"Some member states who were opposing have abandoned the opposition and joined the broader consensus," Borrell explained.

"Others still have collateral questions and some concerns but as chair of the council I think I could consider there is enough consensus in order to launch the technical process."

The original Magnitsky Act was passed in the United States to penalise Russians accused of rights violations after the lawyer Sergei Magnitsky died in a Russian jail in 2009.

Magnitsky, who worked for an investment fund founded by an American-born British financier, was arrested after going public with details of an alleged $230 million fraud by Russian state officials and was held in a facility where he did not receive needed medical treatment.

Washington has used the act to slap tough sanctions on dozens of senior Russian officials, blocking them from visiting the United States or affecting their finances.

Other "Magnitsky Acts" have been passed in Britain, Canada and the three Baltic states.