European Union member states will hold their first debate on Wednesday on new sanctions proposed over Russia’s war in Ukraine that would target Chinese and Iranian companies and cut exports to third countries that violate existing trade restrictions. This is reported by News.ro with reference to Reuters.

Talks between EU ambassadors began at 08:00 GMT (11:00 Romanian time) and are expected to be heated, according to a diplomat. Anti-Russian hardliners are outraged that the plan does not go far enough, while others fear a deterioration in their international relations.

The existence of such divergent views means a deal is not expected too soon, several diplomats said.

The EU leader unveiled the plan on Tuesday during a symbolic visit to Kyiv, a counterpoint to Moscow’s annual celebration of its World War II victory over Nazi Germany, a battle that President Vladimir Putin now compares to his invasion of Ukraine.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the new sanctions would focus on combating circumvention of trade restrictions already imposed on Russia and had been developed “in very close coordination” with the G7 countries. , an organization that unites the world’s strongest democratic economies.

“If we see that goods are leaving the European Union for third countries and then arriving in Russia, we can propose to member states to impose sanctions on the export of these goods. This tool will be a last resort and will be used with caution,” emphasized Ursula von der Leyen . She added that the EU will stop the transit of more export goods, including high-tech products and aircraft parts, through Russia.

Diplomatic sources familiar with the proposal drawn up by the von der Leyen commission said “dozens” of new companies would be blacklisted, including from China, Iran, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

According to the sources, the new sanctions will emphasize that oil tankers are prohibited from unloading at sea or arriving at ports with their GPS transponders disabled in an attempt to counter the violation of G7 restrictions on trade in Russian oil.

It is difficult to reach an agreement

All 27 EU countries must agree for the new sanctions to take effect, which would be the 11th round of such measures by the European bloc since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

However, it will be the first time the EU bloc has targeted China following accusations about Beijing’s role in the war, an aspect China’s foreign ministry has warned the EU about.

A diplomatic source from an EU country with a hard line on Russia expressed disappointment that the Commission’s proposal does not include an end to Russian diamond imports or cooperation in nuclear energy. According to him, the trade losses caused to Russia under the current offer are estimated at 500 million euros, while losses from the previous round of sanctions are estimated at 11 billion euros.

On the other hand, a diplomatic source from a country critical of the sanctions said the proposal to target third countries was sure to spark a bitter row between ambassadors.

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