Bloomberg: EU nations urge tougher Russia sanctions in next package

Several European Union nations are pushing to broaden sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine as the bloc races to find an agreement on capping the price of Russian oil.

Poland, Ireland and the three Baltic nations want the EU to extend its sanctions on Russian energy to include a ban on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) products and restrictions on nuclear energy cooperation, according to a document seen by Bloomberg and to people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reports.

The proposals include cutting more banks from the international payments system SWIFT, starting with Gazprombank.

The Russian lender has so far been spared from the bulk of the bloc’s sanctions as it is used by European firms to pay for gas deliveries.

Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Ireland and Poland also want to see a ban on insurance services and transferring US dollar banknotes to Russia, as well as tougher restrictions on transactions involving crypto assets, according to the document. 

EU member states and the European Commission, the bloc’s executive arm, are in talks to prepare a new package of sanctions which is likely to include more trade restrictions, individual listings and a drive to agree a price cap on Russian oil.

A price cap would align the EU with a US effort to keep the cost of crude from soaring. But it would also likely require the bloc to loosen a ban on services, such as insurance, needed to move oil in order to allow their provision for shipments below an agreed threshold. That ban is due to come into force in December and the cap will need the backing of all member states.