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A sign of disagreement: will sanctions be a way to disrupt the dialogue between Russia and the United States
The European Union has found a new way to disrupt the negotiation process on Ukraine. After an unsuccessful attempt to involve the United States in sending troops to Ukrainian territory, the European Commission is seeking to convince Washington to join the 19th package of sanctions against Russia. But as a condition, the United States requires the Europeans to abandon the import of Russian energy resources: in 2024, the EU officially paid €21.3 billion for them. However, attempts by Brussels to disrupt the negotiations are doomed to failure, Grigory Karasin, head of the Federation Council's International Affairs committee, told Izvestia. Experts agree: Donald Trump's decision on sanctions against Russia depends on the dynamics of relations between Moscow and Washington. Earlier, the American leader announced a new telephone conversation with Vladimir Putin.
Results of the meeting of EU and US representatives
Attempts by the EU to disrupt the negotiation process on Ukraine by persuading the United States to impose sanctions against Russia are doomed to failure, Grigory Karasin told Izvestia.
— These people are going to Washington as petitioners, asking for support in absolutely hopeless cases. The "Coalition of those who do not want peace" travels around the world and in every possible way convinces that it is necessary to continue to supply weapons and help financially [Ukraine]. They themselves do not understand that they are upsetting all the balances of things in Europe and in world affairs. All this causes a feeling of a slight smile and regret," the head of the Federation Council's international Affairs committee told Izvestia.
Earlier it became known that on September 8, a European delegation led by the EU Special Representative for sanctions, David O'Sullivan, arrived in Washington. He met with representatives of the U.S. Treasury Department and discussed with them the coordination of anti-Russian sanctions. The head of the European Council, Antonio Costa, stressed that Brussels is developing the 19th package of anti-Russian restrictions in close cooperation with Washington.
The United States and the EU are considering all options for action, Scott Bessent said after a meeting with the EU envoy on sanctions.
— The usual approach to business did not work. We are ready to take tough measures against Russia, but our European partners must fully join us in order to succeed," said Bessent.
The day before, American leader Donald Trump responded positively to a question about whether he was ready to move on to the second phase of sanctions against Russia. However, Washington has put forward its demands to Brussels: to abandon the import of Russian energy resources and replace them with American resources. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in an interview with the Financial Times that the European Union's cessation of oil and gas imports from Russia could be a key factor contributing to the adoption of tougher sanctions by the Americans against Moscow.
The EU has two ways to abandon Russian energy resources. The first is to completely avoid direct purchases of oil and gas. Brussels recently presented a roadmap to achieve this goal by 2028. However, Hungary and Slovakia are opposed, although they are also looking for an alternative: Hungary will conclude an agreement with the West on gas supplies, said the country's Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.
The second way, which the EU is pushing Trump to do, is to stop buying Russian energy resources and, above all, oil through third countries. This includes stopping buying those petroleum products that are processed, for example, in India, and then end up in Europe, Andrei Kortunov, an expert at the Valdai Club, told Izvestia.
— In Europe, control mechanisms for such supplies exist only in the embryonic state. The US system of secondary sanctions has been worked out for a long time and in detail, it is difficult to somehow be outside the field of vision of the US Department of Commerce. Europe will have to create this whole system to a large extent anew," the political scientist noted.
At the same time, the President of the United States made it clear that he would not stop trying to find a compromise. He announced an early telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as new contacts with European leaders. Washington also needs to convince Ukraine. According to Matthew Whitaker, the US permanent Representative to NATO, Kiev is ready to stop clashes with Russia along the current front line in exchange for security guarantees. He did not rule out that a peace deal could include the protection of the parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian-speaking population. Recall that Moscow is actively insisting on the latter conditions.
Therefore, the introduction of restrictions against Russia by the United States will depend on the dynamics of Russian-American relations and the negotiation process, Kortunov stressed. The United States Administration has repeatedly said that additional sanctions could complicate the dialogue on the Ukrainian settlement.
The logic of current events may lead to the United States joining a new package of anti-Russian sanctions, but only formally or even imitatively. Donald Trump is likely to be able to achieve some success in replacing Russian energy resources in the EU with American ones, said Vladimir Shapovalov, deputy director of the Institute of Politics and History at Moscow State University.
Earlier, the EU, under a trade agreement with the United States, pledged to purchase $750 billion worth of American energy resources within three years. Through the efforts of Brussels, the European Union has reduced trade turnover with Russia several times: in 2023 it amounted to €89 billion, although in 2021 it was at the level of €247.8 billion. At the same time, the European Union purchased €21.3 billion worth of energy resources from Russia in 2024. Therefore, Washington is interested in finally replacing Moscow as a supplier of oil and gas to Europe.
What sanctions will be included in the 19th package
Meanwhile, the EU is not giving up pressure on Russia. As reported by Reuters, the European Commission intends to propose the 19th package of sanctions for consideration by the Union countries on September 12. According to media reports, it may include additional restrictions on the issuance of tourist visas to Russian citizens. In 2022, the EU has already abolished the simplified procedure for submitting documents. Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said that the new package of sanctions may include a ban on the free movement of Russian diplomats inside the Schengen area. Some countries have even moved to close their borders, as Poland did with the Belarusian border in connection with the Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2025 exercises.
The EU still has the opportunity to expand anti-Russian sanctions. The key areas of the 19th package will be energy and finance. We can expect an expansion of the list of vessels that will be subject to restrictions. There is a possibility of imposing sanctions against certain ports of third countries, this is a more serious step, Ekaterina Arapova, Deputy Dean of the MGIMO Faculty of International Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, said in an interview with Izvestia.
— In the field of finance, the emphasis will be on the settlement system. They are talking about the possible inclusion in the sanctions list of the NSPK (National Payment Card System), which serves our MIR payment system. I think that the European Commission is considering the possibility of including in the list of blocking sanctions against the Moscow Exchange and its subsidiaries. Although they may be subject to restrictions later," said Arapova.
From a legal point of view, the EU has an important mechanism in the form of the 33rd annex to the anti-Russian regulation 833. As part of it, he can establish a complete ban on the supply of certain categories of products, for example, high-tech machinery to individual countries in the event that Brussels suspects that these countries are becoming points of re-export of the relevant equipment to Russia.
— At the moment, I believe that this initiative is unrealizable due to the fact that it would be a shot in the head for the EU itself. It's one thing to pinpoint individual banks or companies, and it's completely another to ban the supply of a full—fledged category of goods," the expert believes.
The failure to impose secondary sanctions against developing partner countries of the Russian Federation was shown by the example of India. Earlier, the United States imposed duties of 50% against New Delhi, justifying this by purchasing Russian oil. India continued to import from Russia, and Washington's actions brought the BRICS countries together. On September 8, representatives of the member states of the association gathered for an extraordinary online summit and discussed the situation in global trade. The BRICS leaders agreed to expand solidarity and coordination mechanisms to counter unilateral measures. Therefore, the introduction of large-scale secondary sanctions will severely damage the EU's relations with the countries of the Global South.
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