Borrell says no EU agreement on Russian energy embargo

Petro Welt Technologies AG

25/04/2022 04:00

BERLIN, April 25 (Reuters) - There is insufficient support
from European Union member states for a complete embargo or
punitive tariff on Russian oil and gas imports, the EU's top
diplomat Josep Borrell was quoted as saying by German newspaper
Die Welt on Monday.
    "At the moment, we in the EU do not have a unified position
on this question," Borrell told the newspaper.
    Oil exports are the Kremlin's main source of foreign
currency and many within the EU have called for an end to oil
payments because they effectively finance the war in Ukraine,
which Russia calls a "special military operation".
    Some EU countries are pushing for a sixth sanctions package
on Russia and Brussels is preparing a full impact assessment of
an oil ban as part of possible further measures.
    Russia is Europe's biggest oil supplier, providing just over
a quarter of EU oil imports in 2020, according to data from the
bloc's statistics office Eurostat.
    Borrell said the topic will be discussed at the next EU
summit due at the end of next month and that he did not expect
any decision on the matter before then.
    "A final proposal for an embargo on oil and gas is not yet
on the table," he said. 
    The EU Commission will probably make proposals for a sixth
package of sanctions to the member states this week, Die Welt
said, without citing sources.
    All EU states are working to cut their dependency on Russian
oil and gas, Borrell said, adding that he believed the bloc will
be able to reduce its dependency eventually.
     "At some point it will happen and then Russia will feel
painfully that the revenues from the oil and gas business are
being lost," he added. 

 (Reporting by Riham Alkousaa; Editing by Emelia
Sithole-Matarise)
 ((Riham.Alkousaa@thomsonreuters.com;))