Brussels, July 26 (UNI) The European Union on Tuesday renewed economic sanctions until January next year.
The Council said, "These sanctions, first introduced in 2014 in response to Russia's actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine, were significantly expanded since February 2022, in light of Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified military aggression against Ukraine. They currently consist of a broad spectrum of sectoral measures, including restrictions on finance, energy, technology and dual-use goods, industry, transport and luxury goods."
According to The Guardian, ministers approved a draft European law meant to lower demand for gas by 15 per cent from August through to March.
The new legislation included voluntary national steps to reduce gas consumption.
Welcoming the move, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said: "The EU has taken a decisive step to face down the threat of a full gas disruption by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin."
On February 24, the EU had imposed several sanctions in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
"In addition to the economic sanctions on the Russian Federation, the EU has in place different types of measures in response to Russia’s destabilising actions against Ukraine. These include: restrictions on economic relations with the illegally annexed Crimea and the city of Sevastopol as well as the non-government controlled areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts; individual restrictive measures (asset freezes and travel restrictions) on a broad range of individuals and entities, and diplomatic measures," the Commission added.
UNI RNJ