European Union Members Agree on New Sanctions Package Against Russian Gas Industry

As Russian forces continue their attacks on Ukraine, European Union members have agreed on a new package of sanctions against Russia. On Thursday, June 31, Russia attacked a village in the eastern Donetsk region of Ukraine with cluster munitions, resulting in 3 deaths and 4 injuries. Among the injured were a child and a 14-year-old boy, and a total of four families, several vehicles, and a gas pipeline were damaged. Meanwhile, according to Reuters, citing diplomats, EU member states reached an agreement on Thursday regarding the fourteenth sanctions package against Russia, which includes the first sanctions against the Russian gas industry. This sanctions package prohibits the re-export of Russian liquefied natural gas in the coastal waters of EU member states but does not ban imports, as some EU countries still import pipeline gas from Russia via Ukraine. However, gas market experts say that since the transfer of gas through EU ports to Asia constitutes only about 10% of total Russian exports, this action will have little impact. Diplomats state that this new package also sanctions three Russian liquefied natural gas projects and includes a clause allowing Sweden and Finland to cancel their gas contracts with Russia. Belgium, the rotating presidency of the EU, wrote on the social network 'X' that this package 'maximizes the impact of existing sanctions by closing loopholes.' Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, also wrote on X that the new sanctions package 'will prevent Russia from accessing key technologies, eliminate additional Russian energy revenues, and counter Putin's secret fleet and banking network.' EU member states debated the content of the new package for over a month and ultimately ignored one of the Commission's proposals aimed at preventing further circumvention at Germany's request. This proposal would have required EU subsidiaries in third countries to contractually prohibit the re-export of their goods to Russia. The EU aimed to stop the flow of dual-use technologies, such as washing machine chips that could be used by Russia for military purposes, by adding this clause. An EU diplomat told Reuters that Germany requested an assessment of the impacts of this clause, which could be considered in future sanctions packages. The new package also includes sanctions against the fleet of secret tankers that transport Russian oil outside the price cap set by the G7 countries and includes at least two Russian-owned ships that transport military equipment from North Korea to Russia. In total, 47 entities and 69 individuals have been added to the EU sanctions list, bringing the total to 2,200. This package is expected to be officially approved at the upcoming meeting of EU foreign ministers next Monday. The beginning of UK sanctions against ships violating Russian oil restrictions. The Hungarian foreign minister entered Minsk despite EU sanctions against Belarus. The EU sanctioned the news website 'Voice of Europe' and two related traders. The G7 expressed 'serious concern' over the deepening relations between Russia and North Korea.