Headline Roundup • May 30th, 2022
EU Leaders Agree on Partial Embargo of Russian Oil Imports
Summary from the AllSides News Team
The European Union on Tuesday reached an agreement "in principle" to impose a partial oil embargo on Russia amid its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
The deal would ban all Russian oil imported by sea, which makes up approximately two-thirds of the EU's total oil purchases from Russia. However, the embargo would temporarily exempt pipelined oil as some countries have said they can’t quickly replace plentiful Russian gas. Senior EU officials are expected to meet on Wednesday to sign off on the sanctions, which would also target Russian banks, media outlets and Russian military officials. European Council President Charles Michel praised the deal as a "remarkable achievement" that would cut off Russia's "financing for its war machines." Russia is the world's second-largest crude oil exporter and accounted for about 27% of EU oil imports in 2021.
Most outlets across the spectrum similarly highlighted the EU's slow progress to pass the new sanctions package, which was initially proposed over three weeks ago. Some outlets referred to the embargo as "watered-down," while others highlighted how "Ukraine will need hundreds of billions" after the war is finished to rebuild key infrastructure.
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AP
European Union leaders reached a compromise Monday to impose a partial oil embargo on Russia at a summit focused on helping Ukraine with a long-delayed package of sanctions that was blocked by Hungary.
The watered-down embargo covers only Russian oil brought in by sea, allowing a temporary exemption for imports delivered by pipeline.
EU Council President Charles Michel said on Twitter the agreement covers more than two-thirds of oil imports from Russia, “cutting a huge source of financing for its war machine. Maximum pressure on Russia to end the war.”
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NICOLAS MAETERLINCK/ZUMA PRESS
European Union leaders said for the first time that they would impose an oil embargo on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, taking a big step forward in an economic fight against Moscow that is already reverberating in global markets.
The embargo would include an exemption for oil delivered from Russia via pipelines, an amount that makes up one-third of EU oil purchases from Russia. EU officials said that by the end of this year, the embargo would cover 90% of previous Russian oil imports. It would be phased in over several months.
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Thierry Monasse/Getty Images
The European Union has agreed to a partial embargo on Russian oil after late-night talks at a summit in Brussels.
The president of the European Council, Charles Michel, hailed the deal as a "remarkable achievement," after tweeting on Monday night that it "immediately covers more than two-thirds of oil imports from Russia, cutting a huge source of financing for its war machine."
He added that the package also included removing access to Swift payments for Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank; banning three more Russian state-owned broadcasters; and further sanctions against "individuals responsible for war...
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