EU sanctions against Russia are again a topic of discussion

Created: 07/18/2022, 18:00

Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, before a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

© Zheng Huansong/XinHua/dpa

Can the seventh EU sanctions package against Russia be passed without major problems?

Statements by the Hungarian Prime Minister raise doubts about this.

Brussels - The sanctions policy of the EU against Russia is again causing discussions within the international community.

At a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday, EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell clearly criticized publicly expressed doubts about the EU's course.

At the same time, he made it clear that he believes the EU will stick to its policy.

A seventh package of sanctions, including a gold embargo against Russia, is supposed to be approved this week.

However, it will only become clear in the next few days whether this will work as planned.

Deliberations on the details of the package were not due to start until Monday evening.

Orban chooses a drastic comparison

A few days before the meeting of foreign ministers, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban had clearly criticized the EU's sanctions policy - although the sanctions can only be decided unanimously, i.e. only with Hungarian support.

At first he still believed that they had only "shot themselves in the foot", but now it is clear that it was a shot in the lungs of the European economy, which is now struggling for air everywhere, Orban said on Hungarian radio on Friday.

Borrell, however, rejected such allegations and accused critics of working with false information.

For example, there are people who have claimed that the oil embargo has caused the price of oil to rise, the EU chief diplomat said.

The price of oil fell after the embargo was passed and is currently at the same level as before the start of the Russian war against Ukraine.

At the same time, Borrell admitted that obviously not everyone is convinced of the punitive measures.

"Some European leaders have said the sanctions were a mistake," said the Spaniard.

There is a big debate about whether the sanctions are effective and hit the EU more than Russia.

Borrell pointed out that the Russian economic data, for example, showed how the sanctions worked.

He received support from the German Minister of State for Europe, Anna Lührmann, who represented Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at the EU meeting.

"We see very clearly that the Russian economy has been hit very hard by the sanctions," said the Greens politician.

For example, Russia is no longer making progress in the aviation industry.

According to the EU Commission's proposals, the EU's new package of sanctions against Russia should include not only an import ban on Russian gold, but also stricter export controls for cutting-edge technology and civilian goods that can be used for military purposes.

Other individuals and organizations supporting Russia's war against Ukraine face asset freezes.

Kyiv calls for far-reaching steps

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, who was temporarily connected to the EU foreign ministers' deliberations via video conference, welcomed the EU plans, but at the same time called for additional measures.

Specifically, Kuleba spoke out in favor of accelerating decisions on a price cap for Russian oil.

He also called for Russia's maritime logistics to be targeted and for all Russian television channels to be banned from European cable and satellite networks.

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"It's not about freedom of expression, it's about depriving Russia of the means to spread disinformation and state propaganda," said Kuleba in response to the demand for the broadcast ban.

He also repeated calls for EU sanctions against Russian gas imports.

So far, these have not been enforceable due to the high dependence of countries like Germany on Russian gas.

With a view to supplying weapons, Kuleba demanded more artillery with longer ranges and air defense systems for his country.

He also thanked the ministers for paving the way for an additional EUR 500 million to supply arms and equipment to the Ukrainian armed forces.

With the new support, EU funds for military assistance made available to Ukraine will increase to 2.5 billion euros.

dpa