Against the
\nbackdrop of the ongoing invasion in Ukraine, the European Union on Wednesday
\nannounced the sixth package of sanctions against Moscow. According to European
\nCommission president, Ursula von der Leyen, the new package stipulates four
\ntypes of sanctions that have to do with deswifting three Russian banks,
\nincluding Sberbank, which cover a third of Moscow’s financial dealings. An
\nadditional number of high ranking Russian officials and military involved in
\nthe massacre in Bucha will also be the target of sanctions. The EU has also
\nbanned the broadcast of three Russian channels spreading disinformation across
\nEuropean space, while European lobbying and consultancy companies will no
\nlonger be allowed to work for the Kremlin. The most important measure has to do
\nwith banning imports of Russian oil. President Von der Leyen warned this will not
\nbe easy for Europe, all the more so as some member states are fully reliant on
\nRussian pol. Which is why the package provides for a period of transition for
\nthese countries.<\/p>\n
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Putin must pay a high price for his brutal aggression. Thus, the future of the European Union is
\nalso written in Ukraine. We now propose a ban
\non Russian oil. This will be a complete import ban on all Russian oil, seaborne
\nand pipeline, crude and refined. We will make
\nsure that we phase out Russian oil in an orderly fashion, in a way that allows
\nus and our partners to secure alternative supply routes and minimises the
\nimpact on global markets. This is why we will phase out Russian supply of crude
\noil within six months and refined products by the end of the year.<\/p>\n
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According to
\nReuters, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria have expressed
\nconcern regarding the embargo on Russian oil. The Czech Republic and Slovakia
\nhave asked for a several-year period of exemption allowing them to increase
\ntheir oil transport capacity, while Hungary announced it opposes the
\nCommission’s proposition, saying it might seriously affect its energy security.
\nIn turn, Bulgaria announced it would ask the Commission to apply certain
\nexemptions in its case regarding the embargo on Russian oil. Conversely,
\nGermany has agreed to the proposition, warning however that such an embargo
\ncould create difficulties in fuel supply chains, as well as an increase in fuel
\nprices. Romania’s Energy Minister, Virgil Popescu, expressed solidarity the
\nCommission’s decision, saying Romania imports 70% of its oil demand, of which
\nonly 30% is imported from Russia. (VP)<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The European Commission announced new sanctions against Moscow<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":107,"featured_media":92123,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37738],"tags":[40536,40535,40537,35307],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-92122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-today-in-the-news","tag-ban-on-russian-oil-imports","tag-ec-sanctions","tag-period-of-transition","tag-ursula-von-der-leyen"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n