China has added two European Union (EU)-based banks—UAB Urbo Bankas and AB Mano Bankas—to its list of countermeasures, preventing organizations and individuals within China from engaging in related transactions, cooperation, and other activities with them, the Ministry of Commerce announced on Wednesday. 

The measures were implemented in response to the EU's inclusion of two Chinese financial institutions in its sanctions list amid its sanctions against Russia in July, which the ministry stated severely violated international law and the basic norms of international relations, and significantly harmed the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.