The 27 members of the European Union are discussing sanctions on imports of Russian coal and oil after the discovery of a large number of bodies in the kyiv region, said a European official in Luxembourg.
“There are discussions about what can be done in the energy sector, such as coal and oilEuropean Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said ahead of a meeting of EU finance ministers in Luxembourg to discuss a fifth package of sanctions against Russia.
“For the European Commission, it is definitely an option. But we need to find a consensus among the member states,” he admitted.
The approval of sanctions requires unanimity in the block, which is divided on the matter.
Poland and the Baltic countries press to punish the Russian energy sector, one of the main sources of financing the war in Ukraine, but other States such as Germany or Austria are more reserved due to the cost that it can cause in their own economies.
“We have to pay attention to the sanctions and calmly consider their consequences for ourselves. If we are more impacted than Russia, it doesn’t make much sense,” Austrian Finance Minister Magnus Brunner said.
Russia is the largest supplier of fossil fuels to the EU. It represents 45% of gas and coal imports and 25% of oil imports.
The imposition of measures on this sector gained strength again in the EU after the discovery in Bucha of bodies of people in civilian clothes who, according to Ukraine, they were killed by Russian troops who for a month occupied this town near kyiv.
Russia has denied any responsibility and ensures that the images are a montage.
