After the West imposed heavy sanctions against Vladimir Putin and his inner circle over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Russian president decided to strike back and impose sanctions against what he described as “unfriendly countries.”

An international media watchdog warned on Tuesday about the “disastrous effects of news and information chaos – the effects of a globalized and unregulated online information space that encourages fake news and propaganda.”

In a busy week, the Canadian government levied sanctions against 203 individuals loyal to President Vladimir Putin and his war, proposed a new legislation to allocate frozen Russian assets to victims in Ukraine, and unanimously declared that the war itself amounts to genocide against the Ukrainian people.

For the first time ever, the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) will join a Eurojust joint investigation team, JIT, which was formed to probe whether genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes have been commited in Ukraine.

Canada imposed additional sanctions on Russia on Tuesday, targeting 14 individuals tied to the Moscow regime, including President Putin’s two adult daughters.

Amnesty International called for the release of journalists, editors and other media professionals who have been arrested across Russia for their coverage of the invasion of Ukraine.

Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has hit headlines since Russia invaded Ukraine. Billions of his assets have been frozen by a court in Jersey. French authorities have seized a US$120 million mansion he owns on the Riviera coast. And the fate of his U.K. Premier League football club, Chelsea, has been front-page news around the world.

The U.K. government announced Thursday that it has frozen 10 billion pounds (US$13 billion) in assets held by two Russian oligarchs, both known to be longstanding business partners of Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich.

The U.K. announced on Wednesday sweeping sanctions against 178 individuals from the seperatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, family members, close associates, and employees of Russian oligarchs and struck out major Russian Industries from metals to technologies.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has created a fertile ground for various crimes, including human smuggling and forging documents that allow men of military age to cross the border and evade mobilization, Slidstvo.info reported.

With Russian oligarchs in the global spotlight and U.K. authorities holding his two executive jets, sanctioned billionaire Eugene Shvidler may be tempted to hide out in one of his US$15-million flats in central London, which have remained secret from the public until now.

United States prosecutors indicted a Russian oligarch for violating sanctions imposed against him in 2014 over his support for the Russian occupation of Donetsk, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.

The sister of Uzbek-born oligarch and one of the richest Russians, Alisher Usmanov, was added Friday to the European Union’s list of people and entities sanctioned over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

As the EU continues to target assets of Russian and Belarussian nationals over the invasion of Ukraine, Dutch customs have seized 14 yachts currently in their shipyards, most of them still under construction.

In the ongoing hunt for assets belonging to Russians sanctioned over the invasion of Ukraine, Spain seized on Monday a US$90 million yacht from oligarch Viktor Vekselberg at the request of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

Much like a gambler who devises a new scheme to fool the casino, Russia’s commercial fleets have started to engage in maritime operations under the radar in defiance of international sanctions.

The European Union’s executive body called on member states to immediately revoke the so-called ‘golden passports' and ‘golden residence permits’ they may have granted to Russians and Belorussians who were recently sanctioned over the invasion of Ukraine.

In the hunt for Russian-owned superyachts worldwide, British officials have identified and detained one belonging to a Russian national valued at 38 million pounds (US$50 million).

In another step towards closing off all avenues for Russia to sidestep international sanctions in response to the country’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine last month, U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order that bars all transactions with the Russian central bank’s gold reserves, valued at roughly US$130 billion.

International markets cast another stone at Russia this week in response to the country’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, this time from representatives of France’s healthcare and automotive sectors as they announced the suspension of all Russian-based activities until further notice.