sanctions

At the extraordinary summit of European Council in Brussels, the original economic debates quickly turned to serious geopolitical issues, such as the extension of sanctions against Iran and the strengthening of Ukrainian air defenses. However, as pointed out by Vít Havelka for Slovakian TA3, an analyst at the EUROPEUM Institute, there is no fundamental shift in the EU's approach to countries such as Russia, Israel or Iran.

The anti-Russian sanctions imposed by the European Union are not having the desired effect. After two years, it is becoming clear that the sanctions are hitting the Russian economy, but are not preventing them from being circumvented, with Asian countries, led by China, playing a major role. Thus, the Union included several companies from China and Hong Kong in the February round of sanctions. Viktor Danek, deputy director of the EUROPEUM Institute, commented on the possible consequences in a report for the main broadcast news TV Nova.

The G7 countries are considering the transfer of frozen Russian financial assets to Ukraine. This sum, ranging between $200 and $300 billion, could provide significant support to Kiev. However, such move would be unprecedented and raises questions about compliance with international law and concerns about creating a dangerous template. Martin Vokálek, executive director of the EUROPEUM Institute, spoke on the topic for Slovakian Radio RTVS.

The new thirteenth package of sanctions against Russia was approved today by representatives of the EU. The sanction list has been expanded by another 200 individuals, companies, and institutions. These include entities outside of Russia that are involved in bypassing measures preventing the purchase of military technologies by Moscow. An expert commentary for the Radiožurnál program was provided by EUROPEUM's deputy director Viktor Daněk.

Events around Ukraine and Russia, and the new 11th sanctions submitted by the European Union. The EU has submitted these sanctions to its member states and our researcher Zuzana Stuchlíková comments on the situation.

In a news report on Radio Zet, our researcher Michal Hrubý spoke about the shutdown of the Druzhba pipeline and the current situation with the payment of fees that have not been processed due to sanctions. The fees have been paid and supplies should resume in the coming days.

Our Associate Research Fellow Zuzana Stuchlíková gave an interview for Slovak TV TA3. Zuzana Stuchlíková talks about the process of approving the latest EU sanctions package against Russia and the ban on Russian oil imports. She discusses how the negotiations went, how the exemptions for Central Europe will work, what it means for fuel prices and what will happen next.

Our research fellow Michal Hrubý commented for E15.cz on the preparation of the sixth package of anti-Russian sanctions. Michal Hrubý sees the situation as a clear signal to promote nuclear energy and renewable sources, while the extraction of own raw materials will be inevitable.

Our researcher, Kateřina Davidová, commented for Aktuálně.cz on the latest package of sanctions against Russia by the European Union. According to her, the biggest impact on the Russian economy would be the restriction or ban on the purchase of mineral resources from the largest European customers or even from the whole European union. The best alternative to these energies would be to switch to renewable energy sources, says Kateřina Davidová.

Žiga Faktor, a research fellow from our Institute and the head of our Brussels office, together with Irena Jenčová from the Euractiv portal, spoke in a Radio Slovakia discussion about sanctions against Russia, the unacceptable demands of the Kremlin, and the search for a way for Europe to replace Russian gas and oil. Will economic pressure force Moscow to come to the negotiating table and declare a ceasefire in Ukraine? Would not greater diplomatic engagement by the United States or China help?

EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy joined public statement by initiative e Friends of Free Russia and Czech civil society on Western measures and sanctions against Russian violations of international law and illegal invasion on the territory of Ukraine.

Our researcher Danielle Piatkiewicz commented for the news portal E15 on the situation regarding the planned sanctions against Russia in the case of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.