The European Union is still raising its tone. Following the announcement of new sanctions by the United States, which notably banned all new investments in Russia and sanctioned large Russian banks, the EU adopted a new series of sanctions against Russia, announced by the Presidency French from the Council of the EU.
Embargo on coal from Russia and freezing of assets of Russian banks
The new sanctions approved Thursday by the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the European Union include in particular strong measures on the economic aspect. The EU has therefore decided to ban coal imports from Russia (the embargo will come into force at the beginning of August). This is the first time that the Europeans have hit the Russian energy sector, on which they are very dependent. The EU imports 45% of its coal from Russia for a value of 4 billion euros per year.
In addition to having frozen the assets of several Russian banks, the European Union decided to ban exports to Russia “in particular of high-tech goods up to 10 billion euros”, as well as the prohibition imports from Russia, to the tune of 5 billion euros, on raw materials and critical materials.
European ports closed to Russian ships
“This very substantial package” of sanctions also concerns the military component. The representatives of the Twenty-Seven have decided to close European ports to Russian ships. An arms embargo on Russia has also been approved.
Oligarchs and Russian propaganda actors sanctioned
This fifth salvo of sanctions against Moscow also targets members of Russian civil society. The European Union has decided to sanction “oligarchs, Russian propaganda actors, members of the security and military apparatus and entities in the industrial and technological sector linked to Russian aggression”, specifies the French presidency of the EU Council. A “ban on Russian and Belarusian road carriers” was also decided.