US sanctions against a Limerick-based company owned by a Russian firm have been "effectively lifted", the Tánaiste says.

In December, the Trump administration announced that it planned to remove sanctions against Russian firm Rusal - the parent company of Aughinish Alumina.

Aughinish employs around 600 people at its Askeaton plant in Limerick.

Rusal and another firm, EN+, were sanctioned in April 2018 as they were owned by Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska.

Irish officials had been lobbying authorities in the US in a bid to have the sanctions removed, with senior ministers - including the Taoiseach - having raised the issue with the Trump administration. 

Announcing its decision to lift the sanctions last month, the US Treasury Department said the two companies had agreed to "significantly diminish Deripaska’s ownership and sever his control".

After Democrats failed in their efforts to block the Trump administration's decision, the restrictions have now been formally 'de-listed'.

Welcoming the announcement, Tánaiste Simon Coveney said actions taken by the US against Russia shouldn't damage Irish firms.

In a statement, he explained: "We share the view that unacceptable actions by the Russian regime, and those connected to it, should not go unpunished.

"At the same time, we have been determined that legitimate measures taken by the US authorities do not cause inadvertent damage to Irish companies like Aughinish Alumina."

He added: "While today’s confirmation means that that outcome has been secured, we will continue engaging with the US authorities, and with our EU partners, to help avoid such a scenario arising again in the future.”