Next week, European Union countries are likely to agree to a phased ban on Russian oildeals a major economic blow to Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine, the New York Times reported.
The newspaper, quoting EU officials and diplomats involved in the discussions, stated that the ambassadors will meet on Wednesday to discuss the final proposal, and the expectation is that they will agree on the measures by the end of next week.
With the entry of the oil embargo in stages, European countries will tend to increase imports from the Arab Gulf states, Nigeria, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, New York times reports.
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In addition, officials added, a new wave of EU sanctions will target Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, and several senior Russian officials.
The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that a complete ban on Russian oil was possible after Germany changed its stance this week.
The pullback came from Germany, which has been one of the main opponents of the European Union’s cutting off of oil and gas trade with Russia, after Berlin struck a deal with Poland to import oil through one of its Baltic Sea ports, according to that report.
Two German government officials who spoke to the newspaper said Germany’s representatives in the European Union had raised their objection to a Russian oil embargo, assuming the country had enough time to find alternative supplies.
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The European Union is said to pay state-controlled Russian companies about $1 billion a day for energy.
About 12% of Germany’s current oil supply comes from Russian imports, down from 35% at the start of the Ukraine war, according to German Economy Minister Robert Habeck.
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