EU stalls on 20th Russia sanctions package
European Commission (Photo: REUTERS/Francois Lenoir)
The European Union member states failed to approve the 20th package of Russia sanctions proposed by the European Commission, Ukrainian public
broadcaster Suspilne reported on Feb. 20.
A follow-up meeting is scheduled for Feb. 25, but EU foreign ministers will revisit the issue Feb. 23 and might greenlight the package then, according to EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas.
“Sanctions work; they are inflicting serious damage on the Russian economy, and each new measure further limits its ability to wage war,” Suspilne quoted Kallas.
“Moscow is not invincible; its army is suffering record losses, and the economy is under severe pressure. But [Russian dictator Vladimir] Putin will not stop this war until the costs outweigh the benefits. That is what we must achieve.”
On Feb. 6, the European Commission proposed the 20th package, aimed at further restricting Russia’s energy sector, banks, and trade operations. The measures are designed to reduce Russia’s oil revenues and make it harder to evade existing restrictions through its “shadow fleet” of malinsured oil tankers and cryptocurrencies.
Key proposals include a full ban on maritime shipments of
Russian crude oil in EU jurisdictions. The plan also calls for widening
sanctions on the shadow fleet by adding 43 vessels to the list, bringing the
total to about 640. Separately, the measures would ban technical maintenance
and other services for LNG tankers and icebreakers, targeting Russian gas
export projects.
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