UN Experts Warn EU Sanctions Are Chilling Academic Freedom Worldwide

“The restrictive measures imposed on academics, scientists and analysts exert extensive pressure and provoke fear among academic professionals worldwide,” the experts said.

United Nations human rights experts have issued a stark warning that European Union sanctions imposed on academics, scientists and analysts are undermining fundamental freedoms and sending shockwaves through the global research community.

In a statement released today, the experts said restrictive measures adopted under Regulation (EU) 2024/2642 and Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2568 are having a severe and disproportionate impact on academic freedom, freedom of expression and the right to education.

The sanctions were imposed on individuals based on factors such as professional affiliation with Russian public universities, participation in international forums, engagement in high-level policy discussions, publishing academic work, maintaining blogs, or expressing views deemed aligned with the official position of the Russian Federation.

“Shrinking the global academic space”

“The restrictive measures imposed on academics, scientists and analysts exert extensive pressure and provoke fear among academic professionals worldwide,” the experts said. “They coerce scholars to change their opinions or remain silent, prevent participation in international research projects, and obstruct teaching and publication — resulting in a shrinking academic space.”

Activities cited to justify the sanctions reportedly included:

• Public criticism of unilateral sanctions regimes

• Academic analysis of factors contributing to the war in Ukraine

• Scholarly commentary on contemporary international politics

• Discussions on cooperation between the Global South and the Russian Federation

According to the experts, targeting individuals for such activities crosses a critical line.

“The harassment, intimidation or stigmatisation of persons for opinions they may hold constitutes a violation of the right to freedom of expression,” they said. “Any attempt to coerce the holding of an opinion is strictly prohibited under international human rights law.”

Academic freedom under threat

The experts warned that punitive measures against scholars strike at the core of the right to education and erode states’ obligations to protect freedom of research.

“Academic freedom safeguards the ability of scholars to question orthodoxies, challenge prevailing narratives and advance new ideas — including those that may be controversial or unpopular,” the statement said. “These sanctions amount to a clear breach of that principle.”

Designated individuals face far-reaching consequences, including loss of employment opportunities, restricted access to banking services, limitations on freedom of movement, and barriers to maintaining a dignified standard of living.

Call on the EU to reverse course

The experts stressed that any restriction on academic freedom must be:

• Clearly prescribed by law

• Necessary for the general welfare of a democratic society

• Proportionate and narrowly tailored

• Designed to minimise harm to economic, social and cultural rights

They urged the European Union to lift all restrictive measures imposed on academics, scientists and analysts, warning that failure to do so risks normalising political control over knowledge production and research.

For universities, research institutions and policymakers, the warning underscores a growing concern: that geopolitical sanctions, when extended into the academic sphere, may undermine the very democratic values they claim to protect.