DISINFO: EU’s fascist sanctions against Russia prove European countries are no longer democratic
SUMMARY
The EU’s decision to freeze the assets of Russian nationals is proof that Europe does not follow its own principles. The sacred right to private property, which is the foundation of laws governing democratic states, is being repealed. This means that the countries which made these fascist, Nazi, Hitlerist decisions without a court ruling are no longer democratic.
RESPONSE
The claim advances a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative concerning the EU’s sanctions policy toward Russia.
There is nothing “fascist” about the EU’s restrictive measures in relation to Russian actors. Sanctions are a globally recognised mechanism applied against states, organisations, and/or individuals that may threaten international security.
The EU has the right to impose economic sanctions within the framework of the Common Foreign and Security Policy and in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter. Crucially, any such measures must strictly conform to European and international law, and:
"respect fundamental rights, as guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights and as they result from the constitutional traditions common to the Member States, as general principles of Union law." [p. 7, para. 10]