Source: AFP
The EU is considering expanding its sanctions against Moscow over the war in Ukraine to target Russia’s liquefied natural gas sector, EU diplomats said on Wednesday.
The aim is to further hurt Russia’s fossil fuel revenues as there are growing concerns that previous sanctions have not hurt as much as the EU would like.
EU ambassadors discussed the LNG proposal during a meeting on Wednesday, but an EU diplomat said talks were still in the early stages.
The EU has already unleashed an unprecedented 13 rounds of sanctions against Russia since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, many of which target its key oil and gas exports.
The European Commission’s latest proposal contains “data on ship-to-ship LNG transfers,” another EU diplomat told AFP.
That would mean a ban on European Union ports re-exporting Russian LNG to third countries outside the bloc, but the diplomat said EU states could still import the fuel.
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“This provision does not affect imports into the EU,” a document seen by AFP also said.
European ports matter to Russia as the continent offers shorter transport routes for some Russian LNG tankers, experts say.
Ports in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Spain are the main points for LNG deliveries from Russia’s Yamal Peninsula in Siberia, German environmental group Urgewald said.
The Belgian port of Zeebrugge and the French port of Montoir are particularly important hubs for re-exports to countries such as China, Taiwan or Turkey, according to its study in March.
The proposal also seeks to ban any EU involvement in new Russian LNG projects.
“Such a measure limits the expansion of Russia’s LNG capacity and thereby limits Russia’s revenues,” the document dated May 3 explains.
EU countries paid 8.2 billion euros ($8.8 billion) for Russian LNG in 2023, according to an April report by the Center for Energy and Clean Air Research.
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Brussels is also considering extending sanctions to more Chinese entities accused of supplying Russia with military technology, a diplomat said, without elaborating.
As discussions are still in the early stages, they may change as the 27 EU member states reach a final deal on the package.
Following reports of LNG plans this week, Hungary expressed skepticism.
Source: AFP