The EU still cannot agree on sanctions against russia — France and Luxembourg are making matters more complicated with their demands
Kyiv • UNN
France and Luxembourg are making demands regarding the EU sanctions list. The current restrictions on nearly 3,000 individuals expire on September 22.
EU ambassadors are once again considering the issue of sanctions against Russia today, September 21, targeting nearly 3,000 individuals and organizations. Time is running out – the current restrictive measures expire tomorrow, September 22, at midnight, and no further temporary extension is expected. UNN reports this, citing RMF24.
France is blocking the deal
France, the publication writes, "remains the biggest problem." Paris is demanding that Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov be removed from the EU sanctions list. Officially, France cites national security considerations. However, Brussels is aware that Azerbaijan is pressuring Paris, promising to release two French citizens in exchange for a concession in the Usmanov case, the publication notes.
For some EU countries, however, the problem lies in the principle itself – they do not want the EU's sanctions policy to be subject to pressure from a non-EU country. If France succeeds in having Usmanov excluded, a precedent may be created, and other non-EU countries may try to use such situations as bargaining chips in the future, the publication explains.
However, in recent days, a middle-ground idea has also emerged. The Financial Times reported on the possibility of keeping Usmanov on the list but limiting some of the sanctions against him rather than removing him entirely.
This option may be more acceptable to some EU countries that do not want to revoke the entire sanctions list. An EU diplomat told RMF FM that this option was not officially discussed during the ambassadors' meeting on Friday, September 18.
Not only France
The French demand, the publication writes, complicates the situation, as other countries are beginning to put forward their own expectations.
From the very beginning, it was clear that Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico wanted Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman to be removed. Slovakia was the first to voice its objections. However, according to RMF FM, Bratislava will certainly withdraw its objections if France does so. In other words, if Paris gives in, Slovakia will not want to remain alone in blocking the entire deal.
However, another demand emerged on Friday – this time from Luxembourg. Luxembourg, the publication writes, does not want to lag behind France. If Paris succeeds in removing Usmanov from the EU sanctions list, Luxembourg wants Mikhail Fridman (who is involved in a dispute with Luxembourg over frozen assets worth $16 billion) to also be removed from the list. This demonstrates how quickly the French demand inspired other countries, which began putting forward their own demands, the publication notes.
What happens next if there is no deal
There is very little time for negotiations. The current sanctions list is valid only until midnight on Tuesday, September 22. EU countries have already agreed to a short one-week extension. This time, no further extension is planned, the publication writes.
"This means that if there is no unanimity, sanctions against approximately three thousand individuals and organizations will expire by Tuesday evening," the publication says.
For the EU, the publication notes, this will be not only a legal and political problem but also a very serious image problem. Therefore, it is difficult to imagine that the EU will be unable to reach an agreement, the publication writes.
Radio Free Europe journalist Rikard Jozwiak noted that EU ambassadors are once again planning to meet on this issue on Monday, September 21, at 14:00 Brussels time, following a morning meeting that produced no result.
"The deadline is tomorrow. It is likely that, in the end, at least Usmanov (and perhaps even Fridman) will be removed from the list, and that the sanctions will be extended for 12 months instead of the usual 6," Jozwiak wrote on X.