Kallas: 21st sanctions package against Russia not adopted, expected on 15 July
EU foreign ministers failed to agree on a new, 21st package of sanctions against Russia on 13 July.
This was reported by European Pravda, as cited by Censor.NET.
Sanctions package not yet agreed
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said that no decision had been reached. According to her, the parties are close to an agreement, but there is still no final decision.
"I also regret that we do not have an agreement on the 21st package, although I must say that we are quite close," she said.
Kallas added that she could not guarantee when exactly the package would be approved. She stressed that work was continuing and that another meeting of EU ambassadors was scheduled for Wednesday.
What is preventing a decision?
The European Union plans to return to the issue on 15 July and hopes to approve the package by then. If this does not happen, work on an alternative option may begin.
According to Kallas, work on the main plan is currently continuing. She stressed that the package must be strong in light of Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian civilians and densely populated areas.
EU member states’ ambassadors in Brussels had also previously failed to reach an agreement and decided to continue discussions. The package is currently being blocked by Greece and Austria over concerns in the energy and financial sectors.
In particular, Austria is insisting that sanctions be lifted and the assets of the Russian investment company Rasperia, which is linked to Oleg Deripaska, be unfrozen. The issue had previously been raised during discussions of earlier sanctions packages.
