On Monday 22 May, EU foreign ministers met to discuss in Brussels how to prevent any circumvention of the sanctions that the European Union has imposed on Russia following its military aggression against Ukraine. The aim, according to the French minister, Catherine Colonna, is to reach a unanimous political agreement by the time of the June European summit.
We must “short-circuit” the channels that allow European sanctions to be circumvented, said the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, at the end of the ministerial meeting, which was attended by the EU’s Special Representative on this issue, David O’Sullivan.
Mr Borrell cited two examples where they could be potentially bypassed. He began by noting that since the outbreak of war in Ukraine, European car exports to Russia had fallen by 80%, while those to Russia’s neighbours had almost doubled.
“It's a little bit strange this appetite for EU cars”, he said.
Another example noted by the High Representative is that while the EU no longer imports Russian crude oil, India’s exports of refined oil products have increased sevenfold, while India has simultaneously increased its exports of Russian oil by 36%. While the EU cannot impose its sanctions on its trading partners, “the fact is that we are still importing products coming from Russian oil”, he said.
German Minister Annalena Baerbock reported further discussions on the EU’s eleventh sanctions package. “We all agree that there should be no circumvention of sanctions and that if some companies were to export military equipment, there would be consequences. But this must be formulated in a very clear, precise and legally sound manner”, she said on her arrival in Brussels.
EPF. When asked about Hungary’s blocking of a new tranche of the ‘European Peace Facility’ intended to fund the supply of arms to Ukraine (see EUROPE 13184/9), Borrell called for dialogue to find a solution, such as has been done successfully each time. “I am convinced that we will once again be successful”, he added.
According to Spanish Minister José Manuel Albares Bueno, the Foreign Affairs Council on Monday did not discuss the supply of F-16 fighter jets after the US veto was lifted at the G7 summit in Hiroshima (see other news). (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion with Thomas Mangin)