EU envoys will meet on Wednesday to discuss a 15th round of sanctions targeting Russian oil tankers and Chinese firms involved in drone production for Moscow. The new measures aim to further restrict Russia’s access to financial assets and tighten pressure on its oil revenue.
European Union envoys are set to meet on Wednesday to discuss a 15th round of sanctions against Russia in response to its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Among the proposed measures are sanctions targeting tankers transporting Russian oil and Chinese companies involved in the production of drones for Moscow, according to EU diplomats.
The new sanctions would add 29 entities and 54 individuals to the EU’s existing list, which already includes over 2,200 individuals and organisations. Those added to the list would face travel bans and asset freezes within the 27-member bloc, with little expectation of significant opposition, the diplomats noted.
A more substantial sanctions package is expected to be proposed in January, after Poland takes over the EU's rotating presidency from Hungary. Hungary’s Russia-friendly leader has previously delayed or blocked measures aimed at assisting Ukraine.
In September, Reuters revealed that Russia had established a weapons programme in China to develop and produce long-range attack drones. The proposed inclusion of 48 tankers in the sanctions list is part of ongoing efforts by Western allies to curb Russia’s oil revenues by reinforcing the G7 price cap on Russian oil, although Western officials acknowledge that the effectiveness of the cap is expected to wane over time.
The 16th sanctions package, anticipated later, is expected to impose tighter restrictions on Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) flows and expand the use of the “No Russia” clause. This would require subsidiaries of EU companies based in third countries to prevent the re-export of certain goods to Russia.
The EU is also looking to target financial institutions that help Russia bypass Western sanctions, in a move similar to actions already taken by the United States earlier this year.
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The United States has ordered non-emergency government personnel and their families to leave several Middle Eastern nations, including Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, and Jordan.
European Union stands with its member states in the face of any threat, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in response to the drone strike that hit Britain's Royal Air Force base of Akrotiri in southern Cyprus overnight.
Georgia faces rising diplomatic pressure as Western partners urge alignment against Russia. Tensions grew after the UK sanctioned TV channels Imedi and POSTV, prompting Georgia to summon the British Ambassador for clarification.
The European Union has formally declared that Russia must withdraw its troops from occupied territories - including those inside Georgia - as part of the conditions for achieving lasting peace in Europe.
The Kremlin is utilising the recent United States and Israeli military strikes on Iran to validate its ongoing war in Ukraine. Russian officials are pointing to the escalation in the Middle East as evidence that Western nations do not adhere to international rules.
Saudi Arabia’s state oil giant Saudi Aramco closed its Ras Tanura refinery on Monday following an Iranian drone strike, an industry source told Reuters as Tehran retaliated across the Gulf after a U.S.-Israeli attack on Iranian targets over the weekend.
The Middle East crisis intensifies after the deadly attack on the compound of the Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei on Saturday that killed him, other family members and senior figures. Iran has launched retaliatory strikes on U.S. targets in the region.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. military has enough stockpiled weapons to fight wars "forever"; in a social media post late on Monday. The remarks came hours before conflict in Iran and the Middle East entered its fourth day.
Türkiye raised its security level for Turkish-flagged vessels in the Strait of Hormuz to Level 3 on Sunday (2 March). The development follows Iranian restrictions on shipping after U.S. and Israeli strikes and confirmation of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s death.
Strikes across the Middle East are intensifying, fuelling travel disruption, driving up global energy prices and forcing diplomatic missions to shut their doors as tensions continue to rise.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said the United States has a “virtually unlimited supply” of munitions and is capable of sustaining military action indefinitely, as the conflict with Iran entered its fourth day.
The United Nations has called for an investigation into a deadly attack on a girls’ primary school in Iran, which Iranian officials say has killed more than 100 children. The U.S. has said its forces “would not” deliberately target a school.
U.S. first lady, Melania Trump chaired a UN Security Council meeting on children and education in conflict on Monday (2 March), a move criticised by Iran as hypocritical following U.S. and Israeli strikes that triggered a UN warning about risks to children.
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