The European Commission presented the 20th package of sanctions against Russia

The European Commission has presented its 20th package of sanctions against Russia. The new package covers energy, the financial system and trade. It now needs to be quickly agreed by EU countries.

This is stated in a statement by the head of the body Ursula von der Leyen, which she made on Friday, February 6.

According to von der Leyen, the package will include a complete ban on maritime services for Russian oil exports and new restrictions on the so-called shadow fleet. The EU will add 43 more vessels to the sanctions list — there will be a total of 640 — and make it more difficult for Russia to buy new tankers. It will also introduce a ban on the maintenance of LNG tankers and icebreakers to reduce Russian gas exports.

The package also includes new sanctions against Russiaʼs financial sector. The EU will impose restrictions on 20 more regional Russian banks, as well as cryptocurrency services and companies that help circumvent sanctions. In addition, banks in third countries that facilitate trade in prohibited goods will be subject to restrictions.

In the trade bloc, the European Commission is proposing new bans on exports to Russia of more than €360 million worth of goods and services, including rubber, tractors and cyber services. It also plans to ban imports of more than €570 million worth of metals, chemicals and critical minerals, and tighten restrictions on goods and technology for military purposes, including for the production of explosives.

Separately, the EU will apply an anti-sanctions circumvention tool for the first time. It provides for a ban on the export of numerically controlled machine tools and radio equipment to countries from which these goods can be shipped to Russia.

The package includes proposals to strengthen the protection of European companies from property loss and intellectual property rights violations in Russia.

The previous, 19th package of sanctions was approved by the EU in October. This package introduced new restrictions on Russiaʼs oil and gas and financial sectors and its shadow fleet.

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