Europe Asia News

According to Radio Liberty's Europe editor Rikard Jozwiak on X, ambassadors of EU member states reached an agreement on the 17th sanctions package against Russia.

In parallel, EU ambassadors also stated that they had “approved additional sanctions against Russia due to human rights violations, global hybrid interventions, and the proliferation of chemical weapons.”

According to reports, the 17th EU sanctions package against Russia does not include serious economic measures against the Kremlin but provides for further asset freezes and bans on visa issuance to various individuals and entities, mainly Russian citizens and companies linked to the arms industry. It also includes a ban on 98 more ships, referred to as Moscow's shadow fleet, from accessing EU ports, bringing the total number of blacklisted ships to 250. Finally, export restrictions will be imposed on 35 companies, most of them Russian, along with some from Kazakhstan, Serbia, Turkey, and Uzbekistan.

EU foreign ministers are expected to formally approve these restrictions on May 20.