EU Delays 19th Sanctions Package Against Russia

European countries have not yet been able to agree on a new package of sanctions against Russia. The European Union will not present the 19th package of sanctions against Russia on Wednesday, September 17; it has been postponed indefinitely. This is reported by Politico, citing a European diplomat and an official from an EU member state. The EU had initially said that the 19th package of sanctions would be adopted in early September, and then the date was mentioned as September 15 or 17. Now, according to Politico, the introduction of new measures has been postponed indefinitely.

According to the publication, this issue was removed from the agenda of the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the EU member states in Brussels because US President Donald Trump and the European Union itself have focused on putting pressure on Slovakia and Hungary, demanding that they reduce their dependence on Russian oil.

The previous, 18th package of sanctions was adopted by the EU in mid-July. The Nord Stream gas pipelines and 105 tankers of the shadow fleet were under restrictions. The sanctions also affected Rosneft's oil refinery in India. In addition, the measures concerned 14 individuals and 41 legal entities. The EU also lowered the price cap on Russian oil from $60 (in effect since 2022) to $47.6 per barrel and banned the import of petroleum products produced from Russian crude oil.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot had said that the 19th package of sanctions was supposed to be presented as early September 15. According to him, the measures, which were developed in coordination with the US President, were supposed to exert "enormous" pressure on Russia. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had noted that the new sanctions package was planned to be adopted in early September to continue "pressure on Russia's military economy."

Various sources had indicated that oil refineries in third countries involved in the export of Russian oil could be targeted. In addition, according to the publication, sanctions were proposed against the Russian oil company LUKOIL and its subsidiary Litasco. In parallel, France and Germany had called for tightening sanctions against a large number of banks and cryptocurrency exchanges in Central Asia.

Euractiv wrote that some European countries are proposing to ban the entry of Russian tourists into the European Union. Politico reported that a separate point could include the restriction of movement of Russian diplomats in the Schengen area. The initiative proposed by the Czech Republic implies linking diplomats to their country of accreditation.

Washington is in no hurry to join these sanctions. Donald Trump has stated that the reason for their ineffectiveness is the continued purchases of Russian energy carriers by EU countries. Washington had expressed its readiness to impose strict sanctions against Russia if all NATO countries followed the US example and stopped buying oil from Moscow. The New York Times called this demand impossible. According to Le Monde, Trump is putting direct pressure on European allies, but the demands to stop buying Russian oil and raise tariffs on Chinese goods are unacceptable to them.

In parallel, the Secretary of State hopes that the situation in Ukraine will not lead to the imposition of new sanctions against Russia. Rubio noted that at a certain point, Trump may come to the conclusion that it is impossible to reach a settlement in Ukraine and will give preference to sanctions. But until then, he is making efforts to stop the conflict, the US Secretary of State noted.