An eleventh package of restrictive measures directed against Russia was presented Friday, May 5 to EU member states, announced on Monday Eric Mamer, the chief spokesman of the European Commission. The purpose of this package is to prevent the Kremlin from using means of circumventing the sanctions already in place.
The discussions between the representatives of the Member States in Brussels will begin this Wednesday, May 10. A diplomatic source told AFP that discussions on their adoption could be long, given the complexity of the measures. Adoption by May 23, the date of the next meeting of EU foreign ministers, is considered unlikely. Even before the adoption of the eleventh, a twelfth series of sanctions has already been mentioned. It should be presented to EU leaders before the end of June.
Avoid Sanctions Circumvention
“The objective is to prevent goods banned from export to Russia from finding a way to supply the Russian military complex,” said spokesman Eric Mamer. The European Union seeks to prevent foreign firms and third countries from helping Russia to export its goods by serving as a figurehead. A diplomatic source tells AFP about circuits allowing the re-export of semiconductors or integrated circuits. Electronic products such as refrigerators, printers or electronic calculators are also mentioned.
To do this, the Commission’s proposal targets 541 companies, including 526 Russians. The list also includes companies based in Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Armenia or Syria. For the first time, eight Chinese companies, established in Hong Kong, appear on the index.
No deal on diamonds
In general, the European Union would have noticed an increase in imports with electronic components which could be re-exported to Russia in Turkey, Kazakhstan, China and the United Arab Emirates, according to a European diplomat quoted by AFP.
As presented to the Twenty-Seven, the proposal does not contain a measure prohibiting the import of diamonds, which is demanded by several Member States. Discussions took place on the subject last February, without reaching an agreement. Belgium, where the city of Antwerp is located, the world leader in the diamond sector, was opposed to it. The ban on their export could be decided at the next G7 meeting, which will take place from May 19 to 21 in Hiroshima, Japan.