EU foreign ministers will decide to disburse an additional 1 billion euros to Ukraine for the arms market, German Foreign Minister Alena Berbock said in Brussels.
The tone of the meeting of Foreign Ministers was given by the High Representative of the EU, Josep Borrell, who came and said that “a huge war crime“And” Russia commits many crimes. “
EU foreign ministers are meeting to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and possible new sanctions.
Russian oil
For their part, the foreign ministers of Lithuania and Ireland called on the EU to step up sanctions on Russia and target its lucrative energy sector.
“Given the scale of the disaster in Ukraine at the moment, it is very difficult to say that we should not move forward in the energy sector, especially in the oil and Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney told Reuters.
However, sanctions on Russian oil are a harsh and divisive option for the Russia-based EU of 27 nations.
Diplomats told Reuters that the Baltic states, including Lithuania, were pushing for an embargo as the next logical step, while Germany, which is heavily dependent on Russian gas, was resisting because of Europe’s already high energy prices.
“It is inevitable that we will start talking about the energy sector and we can definitely talk about oil, because it is the largest source of revenue in the Russian budget,” said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabriel Lantsbergis.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Bayerbock said that “the images that reach us from Ukraine are shocking.”
“This makes it even clearer that the EU, that people who believe in a rule-based order, should isolate this regime,” she said on her arrival at the EU summit. what could cause sanctions on Russia’s energy sector.
The Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has stated that the EU is still dependent on Russian oil and gas and that this dependence cannot be stopped immediately, making it clear that there are limits to what the EU can do at this stage.
Moscow itself has warned that EU sanctions on Russian oil could lead to the closure of a gas pipeline to Europe.
Joe Biden arrives in Brussels on Thursday for talks with NATO allies, the EU, and the G7.
A fifth round of sanctions will include adding more names to the EU blacklist, with France saying that if the situation in Ukraine worsens further, there should be no “taboos” on sanctions.
The Ministers of Defense will also discuss “Strategic compass”a new EU military strategy aimed at adapting the bloc to a new geopolitical reality.
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