The European Union will consider sanctioning Russian oil and gas on Monday

Foreign Ministers of the European Union will discuss on Monday the response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the intensification of fighting in the east of the country, with the debate focusing on possible sanctions against Russian gas and oil.

Options such as applying tariffs on energy or paying for supplies through a trust fly over the Foreign Affairs Council held in Luxembourg, although with no closed proposals on the table, given that the Twenty-Seven are still far from the consensus needed to impose these restrictions, stressed a senior official of the THU.

However, once the Twenty-Seven have approved the first sanctions on the Russian energy sector, with a coal embargo in the fifth batch adopted on Friday, the next step in pressure against Vladimir Putin is gas and oil, a key source of revenue for Moscow.

This was expressed by the EU's High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, who sees this measure inevitable and has already said that ministers will discuss it as soon as this Monday. “Sooner or later, I hope that sooner, this will happen,” he said.

European sources point out that Borrell's words are an example of leadership and he moves within the margins of his office to lead the action of the Member States, but the reality is that the EU risks breaking the unity it has maintained so far in its response to Russian aggression.

Among the reluctant countries are Germany and Austria, which have refused to immediately cut off supplies, and Hungary, which has threatened to veto any energy embargo by claiming its national interest.

However, in Brussels they remember that the scope of sanctions against Russia is unprecedented and the European consensus has been built on the fly. “Consensus has been built through doing it and learning. We didn't think we would be at this point a few weeks ago,” argue diplomatic sources, who conclude that the upcoming sanctions will largely depend on images coming from Ukraine.

One example of this is that the fifth package of sanctions included at the last minute the coal embargo at the proposal of the European Commission after the massacre of civilians on the outskirts of Kiev, in cities like Bucha, was known.

It is therefore necessary to combine the reaction against Russian aggression with the interest of Member States, with several that have 100% energy dependence, as recalled by the EU's senior official, who stresses any measure implemented by the bloc must hit Russia more than European partners themselves.

Apart from the debate on sanctions, Monday's meeting will serve to give the EU a boost to the process of accountability for war in Ukraine and bring those responsible for war crimes to justice for their actions. To this end, ministers will have an informal breakfast with the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, and will be concerned about the investigation launched by the institution.

(With information from Europa Press)

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