The EU countries have agreed on a 19th sanctions package against Russia. This is reported by the Danish EU presidency.
According to the news agency, the package will be discussed in writing on Thursday, and if there are no objections, the sanctions package will be adopted on Thursday morning at 08:00. The package includes a ban on imports of liquefied natural gas from Russia.
According to the news agency dpa, the package also includes a promise from the EU countries to further reduce imports of Russian oil. A broad group of EU countries already agreed on the sanctions package last week, but Slovakia was not on board, and it requires unanimity to introduce new sanctions.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico wanted concessions from the EU Commission, among other things, in relation to high energy prices. A Slovak diplomat says that the country's demands have been met by the commission.
The ban on imports of liquefied natural gas will be introduced in two stages. Short-term import contracts must be cancelled within six months, and long-term contracts must be scrapped by January 1, 2027.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also announced new US sanctions against Russia on Wednesday. This is reported by the AFP news agency.
- We will announce a significant escalation in sanctions against Russia this afternoon or first thing tomorrow morning, he told reporters at the White House, according to the news agency.
He did not immediately elaborate on which specific sanctions will be involved.
The 18th sanctions package was agreed upon by the EU countries in July. At the time, it was stated that the purpose of the new package, among other things, was to hit the Russian energy sector. Therefore, a lower price ceiling was introduced for crude oil, which Russia makes a lot of money exporting.
At the same time, a ban was imposed on the use of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. The purpose of the sanctions packages is to put pressure on the Russian economy, which is highly dependent on fossil fuel exports. The hope in the EU countries is that Russia will abandon its war in Ukraine.
/ritzau/Reuters
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