EU plans to resume discussions on sanctions against Russia after Hungary's presidency - Politico
Kyiv • UNN
EU countries are seeking to resume discussions on sanctions against Russia in January, when Poland takes over the presidency from Hungary. The plan is to tighten measures against Russian fuel and eliminate existing loopholes in the sanctions regime.
European Union countries are seeking to resume discussions on sanctions against Russia in January, when Poland takes over the EU Council presidency from Hungary, Politico reports, UNN writes.
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"EU countries are eager to resume discussions in January on how to hit Russia's economy. The reason: that's when Hungary, Moscow's closest ally in the EU, will have to relinquish control of the political discussions, and the new EU leadership team will be fully prepared to push the issue forward," the newspaper writes.
As noted, Poland, usually one of Ukraine's staunchest supporters, will take over the reins from Hungary when it assumes the EU presidency. "And Warsaw has already made it clear that it wants to use its six-month leadership to crack down on Russian fuel flowing to the continent, which remains a critical source of revenue for the Kremlin," the newspaper points out.
"Imports of Russian energy (are) growing," Polish Minister of Climate and Environment Krzysztof Bolesta said earlier this week at a ministerial meeting in Luxembourg. - "This is a bad sign. We need to deal with it.
The EU has already imposed restrictions on Russian oil and significantly reduced its purchases of pipeline gas. But there are many known loopholes that Moscow exploits, as well as a growing shadowy fleet of hard-to-trace tankers that still sell Russian fossil fuels around the world.
According to diplomats and officials, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban used his country's presidency to effectively halt sanctions talks. Now, member states are looking to Poland to revive the thorny issues on the agenda.
"A harsh winter is coming to Ukraine, but it is also the end of the disastrous Hungarian presidency," said one senior EU diplomat.
"We hope that all issues that have become hostage to Hungary's unconstructive blockade will be resolved with the necessary urgency," the diplomat added. - "Undoubtedly, a fresh breath of air is eagerly awaited.
The second diplomat said that there is a growing realization that the focus of the restrictions needs to be clarified. "We need to recognize that the sanctions regime is not working as it should - there are problems with liquefied natural gas (LNG), there are problems with oil, there are problems with certain goods," the diplomat said.
However, in order for the new package to get off the ground, the European Commission, as noted, must first propose measures to the 27 member states of the bloc.
"First of all, we need a proposal from the Commission," said the third EU diplomat. - "We cannot blame Hungary if we have nothing to talk about.
According to the newspaper, the Poles in particular want to use their presidency to achieve greater transparency about how much Russian fossil fuel is entering the EU - perhaps even under false pretenses.
The initiative has received considerable support. Earlier this week, 10 countries - including France, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland and the three Baltic states - issued a joint warning that the EU has recently seen "an increase in Russian LNG imports" but "these natural gas suppliers are not yet properly identified.
The document, which was reviewed by the publication, calls for stricter verification of the origin of gas entering the block to ensure traceability.
"This is a proposal that is likely to be considered by the Polish presidency in January," the publication points out.
It is noted that any new sanctions must overcome Hungary's resistance, even if Budapest no longer directs the negotiations.
Ukraine expressed optimism that Poland will be able to resume negotiations on EU sanctions.
"We have high hopes for the Polish presidency of the Council (of the EU)," Vladyslav Vlasyuk, Ukraine's Commissioner for Sanctions Policy, told . - "As a neighboring country that is directly experiencing the harsh realities of this war, we expect Poland to take decisive action on sanctions.
At a meeting of European leaders on Thursday, which was attended by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, member states signed a statement pledging to further limit Russia's ability to wage war, including through additional sanctions.
