EU hawks call for new sanctions against Russia

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is addressing EU countries’ demands for a new round of sanctions against Russia, which has escalated its nearly eight-month war against Ukraine by launching airstrikes on cities and critical infrastructure and throwing new troops into battle.

According to a group of aggressive countries including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, the measures should include limiting imports of liquefied petroleum gas products and targeting more Russian banks.

This eastern caucus hopes there will be enough momentum to start work on the bloc’s ninth sanctions package, two EU diplomats told POLITICO.

The initiative emerged just two weeks after the EU passed an eighth round of sanctions that capped Russian oil exports, part of a broader effort to undermine President Vladimir Putin’s ability to finance his war. of aggression. The crude oil import ban will take effect in December, while coal imports have already been cut and natural gas supplies have been severely disrupted, most recently by mysterious underwater explosions that destroyed pipelines in exporting Nord Stream gas. crossing the Baltic.

The concern in EU capitals is that although Ukrainian troops have recently recaptured territory in the east and south of the country, Kiev is losing economic warfare against its larger eastern neighbor and could turn the tide of the battlefield. . As Russia deploys newly mobilized troops and sends swarms of Iranian-made drones to target cities and power plants, doubts grow over the ability of the Ukrainian economy and population to hold out through the coming winter.

President Volodymyr Zelensky told Ukrainians on Tuesday that Russian attacks destroyed 30% of Ukrainian power plants.

We are calling for “strong” sanctions.

The move towards new sanctions emerged after foreign ministers discussed the Russian war in Ukraine in Luxembourg on Monday. Head of Ukrainian diplomacy Dmytro Kuleba asked his EU colleagues to impose an upcoming “strong” sanctions package against Russia.

The countries sent an initial letter to the Commission on Friday and planned to send an updated proposal on Tuesday, one of the diplomats said. The import of liquefied petroleum gas products could lead to a downturn, according to a draft letter.

Warmongering capitals of the EU also want more banks to be cut off from the international SWIFT bank transfer system and ban the transfer of US dollar banknotes to Russia. In their draft letter, the countries took up proposals that were not in the most recent package, adopted earlier this month, such as a ban on the sale of European real estate to Russians or the introduction of a ban on the import of Russian diamonds.

Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu told POLITICO that the EU should focus on the energy, trade and finance sectors. He would also welcome an immediate ban on Russian gas, he said, arguing: “European countries now have pretty solid gas reserves.”

At the meeting on Monday, a wide range of countries expressed their readiness to prepare a new sanctions package, according to two other EU diplomats, particularly after the recent drone strikes in Ukraine. According to a diplomat, measures such as further listings and tackling nuclear power have also been discussed, as well as closing loopholes and pressuring neighboring countries to comply with EU sanctions.

However, no concrete timetable for an upcoming package was mentioned during the discussions. Another diplomat from a country not involved in drafting the letter predicted that a new set of sanctions would come sooner or later.

Stuart Lau contributed to the reporting.