The decision to impose a full embargo on Russian oil within six months was taken by Europe, with the President of the Commission announcing a sixth package of sanctions against Moscow. However, the 27 seem to be completely divided, as at least four countries are seeking either an embargo exemption or a two- and three-year transitional period.. The diplomatic background has caught fire as Moscow responds that sanctions against it are a double-edged sword and threatens to increase the cost to European citizens.
“Today we are facing the issue of our dependence on Russian oil. And let’s be clear, it will not be easy because some Member States are heavily dependent on Russian oil. But we just have to do it. So today we are proposing a ban on imports of Russian oil throughout Europe. “This will be a complete ban on the import of all Russian oil, by sea and pipelines, of crude and refined Russian oil.” said the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.
“We support the proposal made by the European Commission – a gradual reduction of dependence on Russian oil over the next six months. “The issue is not new, the gradual abolition of gas and oil imports from Russia has been discussed for a long time and we are prepared for this discussion.”he said the President of Romania Klaus Johannis.
The Commission proposal does not find all European countries in agreement. Already Slovakia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic and Hungarycountries that are highly dependent on Russian energy, in one way or another, declare their opposition to the decision and ask for either an exemption from sanctions or a longer transitional period.
Hungary will not compromise with the European Union’s plan to ban imports of Russian oil in its current form because it is “against Hungary’s national energy security”, according to the Representative of the Prime Minister of Hungary.
“The proposal from Brussels suggests that it should be done by the end of next year. The shortest period – we were clear on that, our oil companies have made it clear – is three to five years.”said Mr. Zoltan Kovacsa spokesman for Prime Minister Victor Orban, on Wednesday to Eleni Gioko and CNN. “The essence of decision-making in Europe is consensus … We support and say in Brussels and in all European countries that, on behalf of Hungary, it simply cannot be done the way they want.”.
“The Brussels sanctions package would ban oil shipments from Russia to Europe for a relatively short time, in the case of Hungary at the end of next year.”he stated earlier the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Peter Sigiarto.
According to a European source cited by Reuters, there will be a new meeting of the 27 on the issue on Thursday 5/5.
The sixth package includes the additional listing of officials and others involved in war crimes in Ukraine, the closure of additional major Russian banks and the banning of three other Russian news channels.
“We are taking Serbank out of the SWIFT system. Serbank is one of the largest Russian banks. It owns about 37% of the entire banking sector. “We will also take two other large banks out of the SWIFT system in Russia,” she said President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.
At the same time, Russia says sanctions will hurt Europeans themselves.
“Europeans’ sanctions are a double-edged sword. While they are trying to harm us, they are also facing a high price. “And they are already paying that price, and the cost of sanctions for Europeans is increasing day by day,” said Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Russian presidency.
In an effort to persuade reluctant countries not to veto the proposal, Brussels has proposed a longer period of implementation of the embargo on Hungary and Slovakia.
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