EU Plans Most Far-Reaching Sanctions Package Against Russia for Autumn

FRANKFURT: The European Union is preparing to significantly expand its sanctions against Russia in the coming months, with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas describing the planned measures as the bloc’s most far-reaching sanctions listings since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Kallas, speaking to German newspaper Die Welt, said the proposed autumn package would substantially increase the number of Russian individuals and entities subject to EU sanctions. If adopted, the measures would immediately raise the total number of sanctioned Russian entities by approximately one-third.

She said existing EU sanctions had already imposed substantial economic costs on Russia, claiming they had deprived the country’s war effort of more than €1 trillion ($1.16 trillion). Kallas stressed that pressure on Moscow should continue to increase until Russia ends its war in Ukraine.

Kallas did not provide specific details about the targets or timing of the new sanctions package. The European Union approved its latest sanctions package in July, introducing additional restrictions targeting Russia’s banking sector and cryptocurrency networks.

The planned measures would mark a further intensification of the EU’s sanctions policy, which has expanded considerably since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The bloc has progressively targeted Russian financial institutions, companies, individuals and networks accused of supporting or facilitating Moscow’s war effort.

The announcement comes as the EU continues to seek ways to maintain economic and political pressure on Russia while supporting Ukraine. Kallas said the sanctions campaign would remain in place and intensify until Moscow brings the war to an end.