On Tuesday, 5 April, the European Commission initiated new sanctions against Russia, proposing to ban coal imports from Russia and ban its ships from entering sea ports of European countries.
«We all saw the gruesome pictures from Bucha and other areas from which Russian troops have recently left. Russia is waging a cruel and ruthless war, not only against Ukraine’s brave troops, but also against its civilian population. It is important to sustain utmost pressure on Putin and the Russian government at this critical point,» said the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, presenting proposals for the fifth package of sanctions against Russia.
The European Commission also proposes ceasing transactions with VTB and three major Russian bans, which accounts for about a quarter of Russia’s banking sector.
Russian ships and ships owned by Russian companies registered abroad will be banned from entering sea ports in the EU.
Read also: Latvia plans to cease using Russian natural gas
There are also proposals to ban vehicles registered in Russia and Belarus from entering the EU.
The European Commission also plans to expand the list of banned Russian products and include on it lumber, cement, marine products, alcoholic beverages and other products.
It is also proposed to ban exports of high level technologies to Russia.
EU ministers of foreign affairs may reach an agreement on these sanctions this week or the start of next week.
Europe to shut down coal imports from Russia; ships banned from entering EU sea ports
