Status: 04/25/2022 10:28 am
The EU Commission is preparing new sanctions against Russia. However, one economically significant measure will be missing from the new package: an import ban on Russian oil and gas.
At the moment, the EU Commission does not see enough support from member states for a complete ban on Russian oil and gas imports. That is why there will be no energy embargo in the sixth sanctions package that the European Commission is currently working on. This also applies to alternative sanctions, such as a punitive tariff on Russian oil and gas supplies, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in an interview with Die Welt and other European media.
“At the moment, we in the EU do not have a unified position on this issue. Some member states have said very clearly that they would not support an embargo or punitive tariffs on Russian oil or gas,” Borrell said.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, for example, said banning Russia’s oil and gas would mean crossing the red line for the Eastern European country. Above all, Hungary, Austria and Germany are considered to be easing the issue of an energy embargo that has been under discussion in the EU for weeks. This means that oil and gas will not be included on the sanctions list for the time being, because the EU can only decide to stop imports with the votes of all 27 member countries.
EU countries are trying to find alternatives
However, Borrell stressed that all EU member states are working to reduce their dependence on Russian oil and gas: “The entire EU is in crisis. Every time I call a foreign minister in a member state and ask where he is or she is, tell me they are buying gas. They are in the Middle East, in Congo, in Algeria, somewhere in the world, buying gas there.”
The EU has already drastically reduced its dependence on Russian energy supplies in just a few weeks, Borrell said. “We need sufficient alternative sources of supply if we are to run out of Russian gas. At some point it will come to that, and then Russia will painfully feel that revenue from the oil and gas business will be lost.” Because, according to Borell, an embargo or punitive tariff would be “important for putting pressure on Putin and bringing him to the negotiating table.”
According to Borrell, an energy embargo should now be discussed again at the next summit of EU heads of state and government. Ahead of this meeting, which will only take place on May 30 and 31, the EU foreign policy representative does not expect any decision on an import ban.
Europe is in trouble
The Ifo Institute last week warned against waiting too long with an energy embargo: Europe is in a quandary here. “On the one hand, more time would give the EU the opportunity to better prepare by organizing alternative energy sources, reducing demand and also optimizing the logistics of energy flows within the EU and in individual countries,” said ifo researcher Karen Pittel Last Friday. .
On the other hand, an oil embargo shouldn’t be postponed forever either: “Because more time would allow Russia to find other buyers while EU revenues keep flowing.” In addition, incentives in EU countries to prepare for a freeze in Russian energy supplies would be reduced.