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Sanctions pressure: the EU allows the introduction of the 19th package of measures against the Russian Federation
The EU is considering the possibility of introducing the 19th package of anti-Russian sanctions, without adopting the 17th and 18th, the European Parliament told Izvestia. The 17th package has already been agreed upon and is expected to be adopted on May 20. As for the 18th, it will be aimed at eliminating loopholes and ways to circumvent restrictions, said MEP Tomasz Zdechowski. Despite the dialogue that has begun on resolving the situation in Ukraine, the EU intends to continue sanctions pressure on Russia, the European Commission said. Therefore, even if the conflict is resolved, no immediate lifting of restrictions is expected. What will be included in the new lists of measures against the Russian Federation is in the Izvestia article.
What packages of sanctions against Russia are being prepared in the EU
The European Union is considering the introduction of the 19th package of anti-Russian restrictions, the European Parliament told Izvestia.
"It is quite realistic to expect that additional packages of sanctions, such as the 19th, will follow, depending on developments on the ground and the effectiveness of current measures," Tomasz Zdechowski, a member of the European People's Party faction, told Izvestia.
The EU will not stop at adopting the 17th and 18th sets of sanctions, followed by the 19th set of restrictions, and so on. The EU leadership is introducing new restrictions, despite the fact that they are damaging the EU economy. For example, at the next session, the European Parliament will vote for an increase in duties on fertilizer imports from Russia and Belarus. This was reported to Izvestia by Thierry Mariani, an MEP from France, a member of the Patriots for Europe faction.
— The introduction of the 19th package is quite realistic. Until the EU achieves its goals, the pressure will continue. The main goal now is to ensure that Russia abandons its goals in the conflict with Ukraine. The desire to defeat the Russian Federation will persist until Brussels is confident that it is really capable of achieving this," MEP Ivan David, who is a member of the Europe of Sovereign Nations faction, told Izvestia.
At the moment, Brussels has agreed on the 17th package of restrictions against Russia. The day before, the head of EU diplomacy, Kaya Kallas, said that he could be accepted at the EU Council on Foreign Affairs on May 20. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also confirmed the readiness of the list of measures and the timing of their adoption. The EU does not intend to stop there and has already begun to develop the 18th set of restrictions, said Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen.
Despite the fact that negotiations between the Russian Federation and Ukraine have begun, the EC does not observe any signs of an end to the conflict, and it intends to continue to impose restrictions against the Russian Federation.
"The EU will continue to exert pressure, in particular through sanctions, on Russia to stop its aggression," Anita Hipper, a representative of the EU's foreign policy service, told Izvestia.
The EU is also discussing a full trade embargo against Russia. According to Politico, the EU countries borrowed this idea from US Senator Lindsey Graham (included in the Russian list of terrorists and extremists. — Izvestia), which proposed to impose duties of 500% on Russian exports. This topic was discussed at the summit of the European Political Community in Albania.
The imposition of duties on Russian goods by the European Union looks strange and makes no sense. Over the past three years, Brussels has introduced large-scale export controls against the Russian Federation, that is, bans on imports of Russian coal, steel, gold, oil, petroleum products, and diamonds. At the same time, in response to American duties, the EU does not impose restrictions and is trying to negotiate, Ivan Timofeev, program director of the INF Treaty, told Izvestia.
Trade restrictions against the Russian Federation will not have a significant effect, since the volume of its trade with the EU has fallen by 71% in three years, Izvestia previously estimated, based on data from Eurostat. If in the first nine months of 2021 it amounted to 200 billion euros, then in the same period of 2024 it was only about 57 billion euros.
What will be included in the new lists of restrictive measures
The 17th package of anti-Russian sanctions was approved by the EU ambassadors on May 14. It was reported that half of the list was prepared by France, and Hungary and Slovakia, which are more loyal to the Russian Federation, agreed to its adoption, since this package is "relatively weak."
The official list of measures is still unknown, however, according to media reports, they will affect 149 oil tankers. Companies from third countries, including the UAE, Turkey, Serbia, Vietnam and Uzbekistan, who are suspected of helping Russia evade sanctions, will also be subject to restrictions.
At the same time, the 17th package of sanctions did not include a ban on gas imports from Russia. The EU previously announced that supplies of Russian pipeline gas and LNG under existing contracts will cease in 2027, and spot purchases are planned to be banned by the end of 2025.
The implementation of these plans is questionable due to the position of Budapest and Bratislava. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico had previously called the EC's plan for Bratislava "absolutely unfriendly." If such a ban is nevertheless adopted, Slovakia may ask for an exception or postponement, Lubos Blaha, an MEP from Slovakia, a member of the ruling Course — Social Democracy party, told Izvestia.
—However, under the circumstances, it is difficult to assume that Brussels would want to leave Slovakia with such an advantage over other EU members," the MEP stressed in a conversation with Izvestia.
The EU intends to introduce new restrictions against Russian energy exports as part of the 18th package of sanctions, said the head of the European Diplomacy, Kaya Kallas. EC President Ursula von der Leyen noted that Brussels could lower the ceiling on Russian oil prices and impose restrictions on the Nord Stream gas pipeline, which was blown up in September 2022.
The 18th package will also aim to further eliminate loopholes, strengthen compliance with existing measures, and possibly expand restrictions on dual-use goods, technology, and financial transactions that support Russia's military efforts. Special attention is also paid to countering the circumvention of sanctions through third countries, MEP Tomasz Zdechowski told Izvestia.
Some EU states are already trying to detain tankers that allegedly transport Russian oil. So, on May 14, the Estonian Navy and NATO aviation tried to force the Jaguar ship, which flies the flag of Gabon, to leave neutral international waters and proceed to a zone where it could be detained. Estonia threatened the crew, including four Russian citizens, with a battering ram. The vessel ignored the demands of Tallinn and headed for the final destination of the route — the Russian port of Primorsk.
The EU does not yet have sufficient resources, ships and aircraft to launch a mission to intercept tankers carrying Russian oil, so this is not currently being discussed, said Robert Briger, head of the EU military Committee. Such incidents are the initiative of certain and most anti—Russian-minded Western countries.
The EU still has room for increasing measures against Russia. Brussels is able to escalate sanctions against the energy sector, as well as replenish the lists of blocked individuals and financial institutions. The EU may also expand export controls, although they are already quite broad, Timofeev believes.
— There may be an expansion of those mechanisms that already exist. The practice of secondary sanctions against Russia's partners in friendly countries may also expand," the expert said.
At the same time, even in the case of a settlement of the Ukrainian conflict, the automatic lifting of anti-Russian sanctions should not be expected. The restrictions against the Russian Federation are not only related to the situation in Ukraine, they are tools, not an end in themselves, and their abolition should be conditional on real changes, the parliamentarians stressed.
"Although ending the active conflict may open the door to dialogue on the lifting of certain measures, it is still too early to make any assumptions,— Tomasz Zdechowski told Izvestia.
Sooner or later, both the European Union and Slovakia will be forced to restore relations with Russia, at least in one form or another, MEP Milan Mazurek told Izvestia. According to him, the sanctions were a step in the wrong direction.
The new European restrictions will not cause significant damage to the Russian economy, as the EU has already imposed all the strongest restrictions. Future sanctions are rather political and demonstrative in nature, they do not differ in scale and novelty. For Brussels, it is also a way to demonstrate the unity of the EU against the background of contradictions with the United States.
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