Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna signed the decision on Wednesday. This imposed sanctions on two individuals. They participated in politically motivated persecution. They violated international law. They undermined Estonia's sovereignty. They suppressed democratic values and human rights.
Tsahkna said: "When our people who resist Putin's regime are persecuted, there will be consequences." Sanctions were imposed on prosecutor Lyudmila Balandina and judge Dmitry Gordeev.
Tsahkna stated that Balandina and Gordeev are responsible for the judicial persecution of the director of Narva Museum. He added: "Both have helped spread Russian propaganda. They have reinforced Putin's oppressive regime. They have violated freedom of speech and human rights."
Tsahkna said: "We do not limit ourselves to national sanctions. People who support Russia's brutal policies have no place in Europe. We will do everything to ensure they cannot enjoy the benefits of freedom."
The sanctions will take effect from Wednesday. Based on this, they will be banned from entering Estonia.
At the end of September, the Moscow City Court sentenced Narva Museum director Maria Smorževskihh-Smirnova to prison. She received 10 years of imprisonment. According to Russian media, she was accused of spreading false information about the Russian military and rehabilitating Nazism.