The European Council agreed on Monday (30) an agreement for the European Union to stop importing Russian oil. Charles Michel, chairman of the board, said on Twitter that the measure “immediately covers more than two-thirds of Russia’s oil imports, cutting off a huge source of funding for its war machine.”
In remarks after the EU summit in Brussels, European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen added that the bloc is expected to reduce all Russian oil imports by nearly 90% by the end of the year. Discussions on the remaining 10% will be done “soon,” she informed her.
Since the beginning of the Ukrainian war, which started with the Russian invasion on February 24, the bloc has been discussing actions to get rid of dependence on natural gas, oil and coal imports from the country chaired by Vladimir Putin. Before the start of the conflict, Russia accounted for 27% of crude oil purchases from the 27 EU member states.
Michel highlighted efforts to put “maximum pressure on Russia to end the war” and said this sanctions package will also include the withdrawal of the largest Russian bank, Sberbank, from the SWIFT banking communications system, the banning of three more Russian state broadcasters in the EU area and sanctions on “individuals responsible for war crimes in Ukraine”.
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