On the 100th day of the war in Ukraine, the European Union officially adopted the sixth package of sanctions against Russia on Friday 3 June. The package was politically agreed by EU leaders at the 30-31 May summit and then by Member States’ ambassadors to the EU on Thursday 2 June.
Oil
The package includes, firstly, a ban on imports of Russian crude oil and oil products by sea. The ban will take effect in 6 months for crude oil, i.e. on 5 December, and in 8 months for petroleum products (5 February), except for the Czech Republic, which gets an eighteen-month lead-up, being heavily dependent on Russian diesel. Bulgaria has been given a deadline for crude oil and petroleum products until 31 December 2024, in order to adapt its refinery. Croatia also will be able to authorise the import of Russian vacuum gas oil, necessary for the operation of its refinery,until the end of 2023.
In addition, Member States that are particularly dependent on Russia for oil pipelines are temporarily exempted and continue to receive crude oil delivered by pipeline until the EU Council decides otherwise. However, countries benefiting from exemptions will not be able to resell crude oil and petroleum products to other Member States or to third countries.
With this measure and the commitments of Germany and Poland to stop importing oil via pipelines by the end of the year, 90% of Russian oil imports to the EU are affected by this decision. According to the European Commission, in 2021 the EU imported €48 billion of crude oil and €23 billion of refined oil products from Russia.
While it is not forbidden for a ship flying a European flag or belonging to a European to transport Russian oil, the ban in 6 months on EU operators providing and financing the transport, particularly by sea, of oil to third countries should make such transport virtually impossible.
Export restrictions
Europe also decided to restrict the export of 80 chemicals that could be used for chemical weapons.
The EU is also expanding the list of persons and entities - Russian and Belarusian - covered by the export restrictions on dual-use goods and technologies and extending the list of goods and technologies that could contribute to the technological strengthening of the Russian defence and security sector.
An additional 24 Belarusian entities are covered by restrictions on the sale, supply, transfer or export of dual-use goods and technologies and goods and technologies that could contribute to the military and technological strengthening of Belarus or the development of its defence and security sector.
Exclusion of four banks from SWIFT
In addition, the EU has decided to exclude three Russian banks - Sberbank, the Credit Bank of Moscow and the Russian Agricultural Bank - and one Belarusian bank, the Bank For Development and Reconstruction of Belarus, from SWIFT.
In addition, the measures relating to trusts have been refined and appropriate exceptions have been made in a revised version of the provision, for example, for humanitarian purposes or for civil society. The provision of certain services directly or indirectly related to business - such as accounting, auditing, statutory auditing, bookkeeping and tax consultancy, business and management consultancy and public relations services to the Russian government and to legal persons, entities or bodies established in Russia - is now prohibited.
Suspension of three Russian media
The broadcasting activities of three Russian state media - Rossiya RTR/RTR Planeta, Rossiya 24/Russia 24 and TV Centre International - are suspended in the EU and advertising for the sanctioned channels is banned. Several EU Member State regulators have already taken action against these Russian state-controlled broadcasters and channels, which will be banned from distributing their content in the EU in any form, whether on cable, satellite, the internet or via smartphone apps.
65 individuals and 18 entities sanctioned
Finally, the EU Council decided to sanction 65 people, including 45 military personnel responsible for the atrocities committed in Bucha, including Colonel Azatbek Omurbekov, nicknamed the ‘Butcher of Bucha’, and those responsible for the siege of Mariupol, including Colonel General Mikhail Mizintsev, nicknamed the ‘Butcher of Mariupol’. Those responsible for the creation of the ‘Salvation Committee for Peace and Order in March 2022’ in Kherson are also sanctioned.
Alina Kabaeva, chairwoman of the board of the National Media Group (NMG), who is rumoured to be Vladimir Putin’s girlfriend, is also under scrutiny, as is Elizaveta Peskova, daughter of the Russian president's press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, and a former intern at the European Parliament for MEP Aymeric Chauprade, Peskov’s son and wife. Leading politicians, propagandists and businessmen are also sanctioned.
The EU is also imposing measures on 18 entities involved in the military sector and in equipment and software manufacturing, including Russia’s largest securities depository, the National Settlement Depository, military energy supplier JSC Oboronenergo, defence ministry telecoms service provider Voentelecom and Russian defence industry insurer Independent Insurance Group Ltd.
In total, the EU restrictive measures now apply to 1,158 individuals and 98 entities.
See the legal acts: https://aeur.eu/f/1ye (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)