Ambassadors from the bloc’s 27 members resumed talks on Thursday morning to finalize the measures – the EU’s 21st set of sanctions against Russia – and soon announced that a deal had been reached. An EU diplomat said that technical work on the package would now be concluded and documents prepared for official approval would be launched later in the day. The agreement is expected to keep a limit on oil prices, introduce new sanctions on individuals and target Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, a group of murky tankers used to circumvent existing trade restrictions. Talks over this latest set of sanctions lasted weeks, with many measures facing internal opposition, leading to some proposals being watered down or excluded completely. Plans to prevent EU firms from transporting Russian LNG – liquified natural gas – to third countries were reportedly dropped at a late stage in response to Greece’s opposition. Ambitions to introduce a ban on Russian ex-combatants from entering the EU were also drastically scaled back. What’s in the package? Extending the price cap on Russian oil to 12 months, rather than the previously reported six months, as well tightening regulations on the shadow fleet are considered the key achievements of the package. An EU diplomat told TVP World that, under the agreement, the EU would keep the current $44.10-per-barrel oil price cap in place for 12 months, aiming to limit Russia’s oil revenues amid volatility in global energy markets. The cap, which was redesigned last year to track global oil prices, would otherwise have automatically risen as oil prices have soared due to the conflict between the US and Iran. The diplomat said the package also includes more individual sanctions listings than any other sanctions package introduced in the past four years. For the first time, the EU is also introducing sanctions on vessels assisting Russia’s shadow fleet in its operations. Restrictions and transaction bans targeting Russia’s financial sector, new rules on cryptocurrencies and further trade controls designed to weaken Russia’s military production capabilities are also included, the diplomat said. The package designates 94 Russian financial institutions – mainly banks – alongside Moscow's stock exchange, Reuters reported. Once adopted, these entities will fall under the full weight of sanctions which include asset freezes, travel and transaction bans. What’s missing? European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said the sanctions package will “continue to weaken the economic foundations of Russia’s war effort” at a time when “Ukraine has built military momentum.” But some provisions in the final package have been heavily amid opposition from member states. Greece was considered the main obstacle to approving the new package, with Athens concerned about the impact of a ban on transporting LNG to third countries on its LNG shipping industry, which is Europe’s largest. The planned restrictions have appear to have been softened. Two EU diplomats told Reuters that the package includes a one-year exemption allowing the transfer of Russian LNG to third countries, with automatic renewal. “Member states showed solidarity with Greece and it’s expected that Greece will do the same with others in the future,” one EU diplomat said. Entry ban for Russian combatants Another point of contention was a proposed ban on Russian combatants who fought in the war against Ukraine from entering the bloc. While von der Leyen said the new sanctions package “took an important step” toward implementing the ban, the exact scope of the measures remains unclear. An EU diplomat said the package contains a commitment to bring forward measures to restrict visas, without giving more details. An earlier proposal for a broad ban on Russian combatants had faced resistance from France and Italy – the two countries that receive the highest number of visa applications from Russian citizens – citing concerns over how the solution can be enforced in practice. Later, a narrower version covering only soldiers directly involved in combat was reportedly tabled.
