Media: EU eyes new Russia sanctions as Hungary transfers presidency to Poland

The European Union (EU) plans to resume discussions in January to tighten sanctions on Russia's economy, coinciding with Hungary's upcoming handover of its presidency to a new executive team, which is expected to tackle the issue more decisively.

Poland, which is set to take over the EU presidency from Hungary, has expressed a strong desire to adopt a firmer stance against the flow of Russian fuel to Europe, Caliber.Az reports via Politico.

This is crucial as these energy imports continue to serve as a significant revenue source for the Kremlin. “The imports of Russian energy [are] growing,” stated Krzysztof Bolesta, Poland’s minister for climate and the environment, during a recent ministerial meeting in Luxembourg. “This is a bad sign. We need to address that.”

Although the EU has already imposed restrictions on Russian oil and significantly curtailed pipeline gas purchases, various loopholes remain that Moscow is exploiting. Furthermore, a fleet of hard-to-track tankers continues to sell Russian fossil fuels globally.

Maria Shagina, an economist and sanctions expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, emphasised the need for the bloc to “reassess its sanctions strategy to improve their design and enforcement — and the Polish presidency certainly provides a good opportunity to do that.”

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has been accused of using his country's presidency to stifle discussions on sanctions. However, member states are now looking to Poland to breathe new life into unresolved issues. “A harsh winter is coming in Ukraine, but so too is the end of a disastrous Hungarian presidency,” remarked one senior EU diplomat, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

“We hope all questions that became hostages of Hungary’s unconstructive blocking will be solved with a necessary sense of urgency. A fresh blow of air is definitely much awaited.”

Another diplomat noted a growing consensus that the focus of the sanctions needs to be sharpened. “We need to accept that the sanctions regime isn’t working as it should — there are problems with liquefied natural gas (LNG), there are problems with oil, there are problems with certain trade goods,” the diplomat explained.

However, for any new sanctions package to materialise, the European Commission, the EU's executive arm based in Brussels, must first propose these measures to the bloc's 27 member states. “First of all, we need a proposal from the Commission,” a third EU diplomat said. “We can't blame Hungary if we have nothing to talk about.”

By Aghakazim Guliyev