The sixth package of sanctions against Moscow, which must be adopted unanimously by the twenty-seven, was presented Wednesday in Strasbourg by the president of the commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
by
While the war in Ukraine continues to wreak havoc, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, presented in the European Parliament on Wednesday, May 4, her sixth package of sanctions against Moscow.
The twenty-seven, which must approve it unanimously, have started to study it, but they have not reached an agreement for the moment. At the heart of their debates, the Russian oil embargo advocated by the community executive. “We will gradually give up Russian crude oil deliveries within six months and those of refined products by the end of the year,” said Ursula von der Leyen. Before adding: “It will not be easy (…) but we have to do it.”
Buying their energy from Russia, Europeans finance Putin’s war. Since the start of the invasion in Ukraine, they have already, according to a real time count operated by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), paid more than 53 billion euros, including 21 billion for the oil, nearly 31 billion for gas and 881 million for coal.
On April 8, the twenty-seven took a first step by deciding to deprive themselves of Russian coal by mid-August. The question of gas, which remains to date the most complex, will be for later. Today, Europeans are therefore ready to study the possibility of an embargo on Russian oil, which represents 26 % of their imports of black gold.
the fear of an outbreak of courses Black gold
But if the Europeans stop buying it, Moscow can sell it to others, by exporting it by boat. In recent weeks, deliveries to countries like India or Egypt, which Russia did not count among its customers until then, have increased. In this context, the twenty-seven multiplied diplomatic initiatives to try to convince countries tempted to buy Russian oil not to play the Kremlin game. Ursula von der Leyen, in particular, went to New Delhi on April 25.
The affair is all the more delicate as an oil embargo could result in a new flambé of courses, which are already reaching heights. “If Russia sells at further prices to others the oil that was reserved for us, it would be completely counterproductive,” notes a diplomat.
Furthermore, the consequences on the growth of inflation doped by an oil embargo could be dramatic, not to mention the risk of seeing social disorders recalling the movement of “yellow vests” in France manifesting itself on the continent. This is why Ursula von der Leyen decided to grant a few months to the member states, hoping that this period will be enough for them to organize.
You have 49.47% of this article to read. The continuation is reserved for subscribers.