EU agrees on new sanctions package
European Union countries have agreed on a new round of sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine, after weeks of negotiations among the 27 member states. The package, the 21st since Russia's 2022 invasion, targets what European Council President Antonio Costa described as "the sectors with the highest impact: energy, financial services, crypto, and trade."
Diplomats said the final hurdle was overcome after Greece was granted an exemption allowing shipping firms to continue transporting Russian liquefied natural gas from the Arctic. According to two EU diplomats, the deal also allows a one-year exemption for the transfer of Russian LNG to third countries, with automatic renewal.
Oil price cap frozen
A central element of the agreement is the freezing of the price cap on Russian crude oil exports at $44 per barrel for the next 12 months. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed that the cap, which was set to potentially adjust automatically, will remain at its current level. The measure is intended to prevent Moscow from benefiting from higher oil prices, which have risen amid the conflict in West Asia.
The EU also moved to strengthen enforcement of the price cap. According to reports from TASS, the bloc has approved a legal mechanism that allows national authorities to confiscate and sell Russian oil seized from blacklisted tankers. The regulation authorizes the "disposal" of such cargoes, including through import, transfer, storage, management, and sale, provided that no funds or economic resources benefit Russian individuals or entities. The EU has so far listed more than 670 tankers flying foreign flags that it says transport Russian oil in violation of the cap.
Financial and energy sector measures
The new sanctions package expands measures against Russia's financial and banking sector. According to the EU Council, asset freezes and prohibitions on making funds available are imposed on 94 banks and major financial institutions, as well as on an unnamed prominent figure in Russia's banking establishment. The transaction ban is extended to 33 additional Russian credit and financial institutions.
For the first time, the EU introduced a transaction ban against non-Russian banks for circumventing sanctions, including a Kyrgyz bank connected to the SPFS (System for Transfer of Financial Messages) ban and three other non-Russian banks. The package also targets crypto-related service platforms, adding 14 based in Georgia, Panama, the UAE, the Marshall Islands, Kyrgyzstan, and Belarus, and introduces the possibility of a full third-country ban for crypto-asset services.
In the oil sector, the EU is designating 18 entities and one individual, including three refineries in Russia, a major Belarusian oil refinery, and a company created to sell Belarusian petroleum products within Russia. A transaction ban is also imposed on a Georgian refinery allegedly involved in trading and refining Russian oil, which will take effect in six months. Five oil traders have been added to the transaction ban for violating the purchase ban on Russian oil.
The EU has also blacklisted businessman Mikhail Gutseriyev and a number of oil processing plants and fuel companies, including Anzhersky Oil and Gas Company, Anzhersky Oil Refinery, Oil Refinery 'North Kuzbass,' Kuibyshevsk Oil Refinery, Novokuybyshevsk Oil Refinery, and Lukoil-Marinbunker, according to the Official Journal of the European Union.
Key claims
- The EU agreed on its 21st sanctions package against Russia, targeting energy, financial services, crypto, and trade.
- The oil price cap on Russian crude exports is set at $44 per barrel for the next 12 months.
- Greece received an exemption to continue transporting Russian LNG from the Arctic.
- The EU imposed asset freezes and transaction bans on Russian banks and financial institutions, and introduced a transaction ban on non-Russian banks for circumventing sanctions.
- The EU blacklisted businessman Mikhail Gutseriyev and multiple oil processing plants and fuel companies.
- The EU approved a mechanism to confiscate and sell Russian oil seized from blacklisted tankers.
Perspectives
EU officials: European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen framed the package as targeting high-impact sectors, with von der Leyen emphasizing that the frozen price cap ensures "the Russian war machine" does not benefit from automatic adjustments.
EU Council statements: The Council presented the measures as significantly expanding action against Russia's financial and banking sector, describing it as "a vehicle of Russia's war economy," and targeting the oil sector with listings of refineries and traders.
TASS reporting: The Russian state news agency highlighted the scale of the new listings (218 total, the largest in four years) and detailed the measures against banks, crypto platforms, and oil industry entities, without offering an explicit Russian government response.