EU blacklists 218 targets and agrees to watered-down 21st sanctions package against Russia

The European Union (EU) has agreed on a 21st package of sanctions against Russia, after shelving some proposed measures to appease member states, most notably Greece.

The latest set of sanctions, which are aimed at squeezing Moscow’s financial system, originally included a ban on imports of Russian liquified natural gas (LNG) and a ban on the transport of Russian LNG to third countries. 

But they have been watered down to allow contracts signed before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to continue, with an annual review.

The exemption allows companies such as Greece’s Dynagas to continue transporting Russian LNG to non-EU countries.

Greece has one of the world’s largest LNG shipping fleets and the vessels cannot be easily redeployed to other trades.

Athens argued that the EU’s original measures would have meant selling the ships to non-Western buyers, without markedly decreasing Russia’s energy revenues. 

Exemptions from the sanctions package were also secured for the Head of Russia’s Orthodox Church, Patriarch Krill, by Bulgaria and Vienna headquartered Raiffeisen Bank by Austria. 

The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said the new measures targeted 218 individuals and entities would impact Russia’s military-industrial complex and its energy sector.

“We are hitting Putin where it hurts most: cutting off the financial lifelines he relies on to sustain his war.  

“This is not the end of the road on sanctions. We are already working on the next steps. The EU must be ready to respond to any further Russian escalation,” she said in a post on X. 

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One of the principal measures in the new package is a price cap on Russian oil for 12 months.

The price cap allows Western companies to ship and insure Russian oil only if it is sold below a set price, aiming to reduce Moscow's revenues while keeping global oil supplies flowing. 

Russia’s cryptocurrency operators and banks 

Kallas said that the measures target 218 individuals and entities hitting more than 100 banks and cryptocurrency operators, more than 40 vessels from Russia's so-called shadow fleet, as well as several oil refineries.

The package also adds more than 50 military-industrial entities to the sanctions list, including key actors involved in producing Russia's long-range drones, she said.

The latest package still needs to be approved by EU ministers, which is expected to be a formality. 

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