Sofia Sambulova
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Zelensky imposes sanctions on former press secretary Yulia Mendel, Rostec-linked firms and shadow-fleet tankers
President Volodymyr Zelensky on September 13, 2026 signed three decrees enacting National Security and Defense Council decisions imposing personal sanctions on his former press secretary Yulia Mendel and nine Russian nationals, sanctions on 29 Russian citizens and 29 entities linked to defense conglomerate Rostec, and ten-year sanctions on 20 vessels of the Russian shadow fleet. The Mendel sanction, the first against a former member of his own inner circle, follows her May 2026 interview with Tucker Carlson in which she alleged Zelensky was willing to hand over Donbas and accused him of money laundering and drug use. Mendel called the measures anti-constitutional and said she expects a state treason charge.