EU approves 18th Russia sanctions package after Slovakia ends protest
July 18 (UPI) -- The European Union on Friday reached an agreement to impose its 18th round of sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine after Slovakia ended its protest.
The package targets Russia's so-called shadow fleet of ships as well as the energy and banking sectors. It also lowers the oil cap from $60 to $45 a barrel and prohibiting the EU from accessing Russian Nord Stream pipelines.
The EU is also, for the first time, sanctioning a flag registry and Russian oil company Rosneft's largest refinery in India.
"We are standing firm," the EU's top diplomat, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, said in a statement.
"We will keep raising the costs, so stopping the aggression becomes the only path forward for Moscow."
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen celebrated its adoption online, saying with the new package, "We are striking at the heart of Russia's war machine."
"The pressure is on," she said. "It will stay on until Putin ends this war."
The EU has been hitting Russia with sanctions since it illegally annexed Crimea in 2014, but they have significantly ramped up since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It has since blacklisted more than 2,400 people and entities with its 17 adopted packages, along with other punitive measures.
The 18th package was blocked for days by Slovakia, which was protesting a separate EU proposal to phase out all Russian fuel supplies by 2028. Slovakian President Robert Fico had requested an exemption to allow it to fulfill its contract with Russia's Gazprom until it expires in 2034.
But he relinquished his request late Thursday in a video published to Facebook.
All 27 members of the bloc need to vote unanimously for the sanctions to be adopted.
"We welcome the European Union's latest sanctions package and are grateful to all who have made it possible," Yulia Svyrydenko, Ukraine's new prime minister, said in a statement.
"By targeting the ships, the banks and the networks that sustain Russia's war, this package strengthens the pressures where it counts. There is more to be done. But each measure taken with clarity and resolve helps bring Russia' war closer to its end."
Nearly 22,000 entities and individuals have been hit with sanctions over Russia's war in Ukraine, according to sanctions analysis platform Castellum, making it by far the most sanctioned country in the world.
The EU has imposed the fourth-most sanctions against Russia, following the United States, Canada and Switzerland.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
UPI
9 hours ago
- UPI
Ukraine's Zelensky seeks cease-fire meeting next week
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday called for a high-level meeting with Russian officials next week to discuss ending the war with Russia. File Photo by Turkish Presidential Press Office/EPA-EFE July 19 (UPI) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wants cease-fire negotiations with Russia next week and said he would be willing to meet directly and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Ukrainian officials have proposed cease-fire negotiations next week, and Russian officials confirmed their receipt of the proposal for a high-level talk, CNN reported on Saturday. "We need to do everything possible to achieve a cease-fire," Zelensky told Ukrainians Saturday during his daily address. "The Russian side must stop avoiding decisions regarding prisoner exchanges, the return of children and the cessation of killings," Zelensky said. "A meeting at the leadership level is essential to genuinely secure peace," he added. "Ukraine is ready for such a meeting." That meeting could be between Putin and Zelensky, the BBC reported. Ukraine's call for cease-fire negotiations comes after Russia attacked 10 Ukrainian cities and other locales during the overnight hours from Friday into Saturday. Russia launched more than 340 explosive drones and decoys and 35 ballistic missiles at targets in Ukraine, many of which the Ukrainian military said it intercepted. President Donald Trump on Sunday announced the United States will sell Patriot missile-defense systems to NATO, which will provide them to Ukraine. Trump also threatened to impose 100% tariffs on Russia if Putin does not end its war against Ukraine within 50 days. Russian and Ukrainian officials last met in Istanbul in early June, but that meeting ended quickly with no cease-fire agreement.
UPI
10 hours ago
- UPI
Tech firm CEO resigns amid Coldplay concert kiss cam controversy
Coldplay singer Chris Martin pointed out an embarrassing moment during a Wednesday night concert in Massachusetts that caught Astronomer chief executive officer Andy Byron with a woman other than his wife on a "kiss cam" shot. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo July 19 (UPI) -- Software developer Astronomer says former Chief Executive Officer Andy Byron resigned amid controversy following his attendance at a recent Coldplay concert. New York-based Astronomer confirmed Byron's resignation on Saturday and said co-founder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy is its interim chief executive officer while its board of directors seeks a permanent replacement for Byron. "Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding," Astronomer officials said Saturday in a post on X. "Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met." Byron is married but was caught attending a Coldplay concert with another woman on Wednesday night at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. The stadium's "kiss cam" zeroed in on Byron with his arms wrapped around a woman standing in front of him during the concert, NBC News reported. When they realized they were on the kiss cam, Byron ducked out of the camera shot, while the unidentified woman covered her face. Coldplay's lead singer Chris Martin noticed the pair's reaction during the concert and opined: "Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy." The video of the moment went viral, and social media sleuths identified the man as Byron. Astronomer placed him on leave on Friday before accepting his resignation a day later, according to NBC News. The tech firm is a relatively small company with fewer than 500 employees and noted the viral incident's impact on its operations. "While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not," Astronomer said in its X post. "We're continuing to do what we do best: helping our customers with their toughest data and AI problems."
UPI
10 hours ago
- UPI
Gabbard: DOJ should investigate Obama administration for 2016 claims
National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard on Friday announced she forwarded documents to the Department of Justice to investigate the Obama administration for abuse of power due to 2016 claims of Russian interference in the U.S. election. Photo by Aaron Schwartz/UPI | License Photo July 19 (UPI) -- The Obama administration should be investigated for abuse of power to smear President Donald Trump in 2016, National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard said on Friday. Gabbard announced the release of files and a memo related to claims of Russia's alleged attempt to disrupt the 2016 elections to help Trump win the presidency over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. "There was a treasonous conspiracy in 2016 committed by officials at the highest level of government," Gabbard said in a news release on Friday. "Their goal was to subvert the will of the American people and enact what was essentially a years-long coup with the objective of trying to usurp the president from fulfilling the mandate bestowed upon him by the American people," Gabbard said. She accused the Obama administration of an "egregious abuse of power and blatant rejection of our Constitution" that "threatens the very foundation and integrity of our democratic republic." President Barack Obama and his national security cabinet members "manufactured and politicized intelligence to lay the groundwork" for falsifying claims that Russia acted to influence the election in Trump's favor and to impeach the president, according to the DNI release. Gabbard in 2019 was a member of the Democratic Party and a representative from Hawaii who said, "I could not in good conscience vote either yes or no," during the Dec. 18, 2019, House vote to impeach Trump, according to Politico. The DNI release says the U.S. intelligence community consistently concluded Russia likely was not trying to influence the 2016 election, and then-DNI Director James Clapper on Dec. 7, 2016, concluded "foreign adversaries did not use cyberattacks" to alter the election results. Despite evidence to the contrary, Gabbard says Obama and others tasked Clapper with creating a new intelligence community assessment that claimed Russia acted to influence the election. Obama officials then leaked false statements claiming Russia tried to influence the election's outcome and produced a new assessment on Jan. 6, 2017, that contradicted prior assessments on the matter, according to the DNI. Gabbard said she is forwarding relevant materials to the Department of Justice for possible legal action. Some congressional Democrats have challenged Gabbard's announcement. "The unanimous, bipartisan conclusion was that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to benefit Donald Trump," Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., told CNN on Friday. "This is just another example of the DNI trying to cook the books, rewrite history and erode trust in the intelligence agencies she's supposed to be leading," Warner added. Warner is vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Ranking Member Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., said "every legitimate investigation" into the matter affirmed the findings of the 2016 Intelligence Community Assessment, CNN reported.
