Ukraine Gate- Kyiv – May 16, 2022 – There is no guarantee that the bloc will be able to quickly agree on a new set of sanctions against Russia, as a small group of countries led by Hungary oppose an oil embargo, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell said on Monday.
“We will do everything we can to expose the situation and I cannot guarantee that this will happen because the positions are very strong,” Borrell added, warning at the same time of a “deep economic crisis” caused by the war in Ukraine.
He pointed out that Russia is preventing wheat from leaving Ukraine and reaching markets, expressing concern about the consequences of the Russian war on Ukraine.
Borrell explained that some EU member states face more difficulties because they are more dependent on Russian oil, and because they are landlocked, and get oil only through pipelines that come from Russia.
The European Union Foreign Policy Commissioner affirmed, “We will support the accession of Sweden and Finland to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)” and we hope to overcome any reluctance.
The Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, stressed that the sixth European sanctions package should include the Russian oil embargo.
The Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, said that “the entire union is hostage to one member state… There are countries like Hungary that have been offered to phase out Russian oil until December 31, 2024, and everyone expected that this would be enough.”
On May 4, the European Commission proposed a sixth package of sanctions related to the Ukraine war, which includes a ban on oil imports from Russia.
