European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday proposed a new round of sanctions against Russia, imposed as a result of the Ukrainian War. The measures are expected to include more severe trade restrictions, penalties against businessmen and important figures, in addition to limiting the price of Russian oil.
If the European Commission manages to move forward with the measures, the new sanctions could even affect trade relations between Brazil and Russia. This is because, according to Von der Leyen, the G7 – a group of the seven main economies in the world, excluding China and India – defined that the price limit would also apply to developing countries.
“We know that some developing countries still need Russian oil, but at low prices. So the G7 agreed in principle to introduce a price ceiling on Russian oil for other nations,” he said.
The prices that would be stipulated by the Europeans and the range of fuels targeted by the sanctions are still uncertain. In any case, the package could disrupt negotiations between Itamaraty and the Kremlin for Brazil to buy Russian diesel at a price below the market, as defended by President Jair Bolsonaro.
Other emerging powers are already following this path. This is the case of China, India and Turkey, which since the invasion of Ukraine have significantly increased their purchases of Russian fuel. The transactions have derailed plans for the West, which is trying to empty the Kremlin’s cash.
The movement, by the way, was already being criticized by Kiev, which pressures Brussels to fight it. Earlier, Oleg Ustenko, economic adviser to the Ukrainian government, called the contours adopted by other countries ridiculous and defended the need for “the whole civilized world to be united” against the war.
Embargoes similar to the one proposed this Wednesday already affect Cuba, Venezuela and Iran. In these cases, the US punishes companies or individuals, even if they are not Americans, who trade with these countries.
The proposal must go to the plenary of the European Union to be examined by the 27 member countries. Despite pressure on Europe to respond to Moscow’s latest moves — the announcement of Vladimir Putin’s partial mobilization, the threat of the use of nuclear weapons and the referendum on the annexation of four regions in eastern Ukraine — approval of sanctions could take some time.
The stumbling block lies in the bloc’s requirement for unanimity to pass the penalties — capping the value of Russian oil could be too much for Hungary, whose prime minister, Viktor Orbán, cultivates close ties with Putin.
In his speech, von der Leyen also said that the European Union will punish those parties that try to resell Western goods to Russia through third countries. “We will not accept false referendums or any kind of annexation. We are determined to make the Kremlin pay the price of this new escalation,” he said, estimating that the retaliation package would cost Russian coffers €7bn. .
The measures also include expanding the list of goods that must not be exported to Russia, reducing the provision of services by European companies to Russian customers and making it impossible for citizens of countries in the bloc to assume positions on boards of state-owned companies in the Moscow government.
The new package could also reach the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Cyril. Putin’s friend, he is an influential figure in sustaining the war within the country.
The European Union should start discussions this Friday (30), but negotiations should take place effectively at the next meeting of the bloc’s leaders, scheduled to take place in the Czech Republic on October 6.
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