At a summit meeting, the EU states discuss further strategy in the Ukraine conflict – and agree on a compromise on the oil embargo against Russia.
+++ 11.20 p.m.: The planned EU sanctions package and the associated partial oil embargo against Russia could not be passed on Wednesday (June 1), as reported by Agence France-Press (afp). According to EU diplomats, Hungary caused a delay in the detailed negotiations. According to the information, Hungary wanted the Sanctions against Russian Orthodox Patriarch Cyril don’t carry.
Ambassadors from the 27 member states met to clarify the legal details of the sanctions. In addition to the patriarch, around 60 other people close to the Kremlin are on the sanctions list. In addition, three other Russian banks are to be excluded from the Swift payment system, according to afp.
“Heated debate” about Putin calls: Estonia’s head of government gives details of the EU summit
Update from Wednesday, June 1st, 12:00 p.m.: At the EU summit there were apparently heated discussions about whether and to what extent telephone calls were and should be made with Vladimir Putin. This was explained by Estonia’s Prime Minister, Kaja Kallas, on TV: “We had a very heated debate about calling Putin.” She expressed her view of what “the so-called advantages” of the phone calls have been since the beginning of the Ukraine war. Kallas had repeatedly been critical of talks with Putin.
Chancellor Scholz has spoken to Putin on several occasions since the Russian invasion began. The most recent phone call took place on Saturday (May 28). Before that, there had been radio silence between Berlin and Moscow for several weeks.
+++ 11 p.m.: The energy dispute between Russia and the EU continues to escalate. While the Russian energy company Gazprom had previously announced that it would stop deliveries to the Dutch utility Gasterra, two more have now followed, as afp writes. From Wednesday (June 1), the Russian side will turn off the gas tap for the Danish company Orsted and the British-Dutch group Shell.
The reason is the refusal of the companies to accept a payment in rubles. Because of EU sanctions against Russia, Vladimir Putin had demanded payments from “unfriendly” countries in rubles. Since the contracts were concluded in dollars and euros, the demand has not been met in most EU countries. Earlier, Russia stopped deliveries for the countries: Finland, Bulgaria and Poland.
Oil embargo against Russia: Orban speaks of “frustrated nuclear bomb”
+++ 1 p.m.: Families can sleep peacefully tonight,” announced Viktor Orbán, because: “We have fended off the most hair-raising idea.” Hungary’s prime minister immediately commented on Facebook after the compromise decision on the oil embargo against Russia. “We have reached an agreement that states that countries that receive oil through pipelines can continue to operate their economies under the previous conditions,” Orbán continued. The EU decision should cover more than two-thirds of Russian oil imports by the end of the year.
During the negotiations, there was evidently enormous resistance from the Hungarian government. A total import ban on Russian oil would have been “unacceptable” for Hungary and “like a nuclear bomb,” Orbán said in his message. “But we managed to prevent that.” Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) nevertheless spoke of “drastic” sanctions against Russia. However, there has now again been prominent criticism of his policy in the Ukraine conflict.
+++ 10.30 a.m.: The Ukrainian ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnyk, has described the compromise on the oil embargo against Russia as a “half step”. Melnyk spoke to Deutschlandfunk after the joint decision at the EU summit. Even with the decision made, supplies of Russian oil are still possible, the Ukrainian ambassador complained.
In this way, Vladimir Putin continues to receive millions of euros from Europe to finance Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, Melnyk said. For example, the Russian president is offering soldiers four times as much to hire them as mercenaries for the Ukraine war. That is the Russian strategy to compensate for heavy losses. Melnyk stressed that an immediate, full-scale oil embargo was needed to stop Putin.
Update from Tuesday, May 31, 12:30 a.m.: EU leaders have agreed on an oil embargo on most oil imports from Russia. The decision will cover “more than two-thirds of oil imports from Russia” by the end of the year, said EU Council President Charles Michel late on Monday evening (May 30) in Brussels. The EU is thus cutting off the Kremlin “from a huge source of funding for its war machine,” he emphasized in a first statement.
+++ 8.30 p.m.: Plans for a full European oil embargo against Russia are off the table for the time being because of a blockade from Hungary. At a summit meeting in Brussels on Monday evening, it became apparent that the 27 EU countries would only agree to a limited ban on Russian oil imports, if at all. Accordingly, only deliveries by sea would be prevented. However, procurement via pipeline would still be possible. Hungary could thus continue to be supplied overland via the huge Druzhba pipeline.
The EU Commission, under its President Ursula von der Leyen, proposed this compromise shortly before the summit in view of the previous blockade from Budapest. Hungary’s right-wing head of government Viktor Orban welcomed this, but made new demands. Because of the war of aggression in Ukraine, which has been going on for more than three months, the EU has already imposed massive sanctions on Russia. The Europeans are trying to present a united front to Moscow.
EU summit: Hungary blocks full oil embargo
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) said of the latest developments: “Everything I hear sounds as if there could be a consensus. At the same time, he made it clear that Germany, like Poland, does not want to benefit from the exception for pipeline oil. EU Council President Charles Michel and other summit participants were also optimistic that a compromise could be reached after weeks of dispute. According to Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, despite the exemption, the embargo would help cut Russian oil sales to the EU by around 90 percent.
Hungary’s Prime Minister Orban described the compromise proposal as a good approach – but at the same time made new demands. He demanded guarantees if, for example, pipeline oil could no longer be delivered to his country due to an accident. Then Hungary must have the right to obtain oil by sea. In addition, Hungary demanded financial commitments for the conversion of its oil infrastructure. The government in Budapest put the cost of converting refineries to non-Russian oil at up to 550 million euros. In addition, 200 million would have to be invested in order to supply the country in the future via a pipeline that begins on the Adriatic coast.
EU summit: Dispute over oil embargo against Russia – Hungary again blocks compromise
First report from Monday, May 30, 9:28 a.m.: BRUSSELS – The EU summit beginning on Monday (May 30) in Brussels could be overshadowed by the ongoing dispute over an EU oil embargo on Russia. According to information from the German Press Agency, the government of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban prevented agreement on a new compromise proposal on Sunday (May 29) by making its approval dependent on financial commitments from the EU. Countries like the Netherlands were also critical of the compromise proposal.
In order to solve the blockade in Hungary, which has been going on for weeks, the EU Commission had previously proposed only allowing imports of oil transported by ship to be phased out for the time being. Hungary, which is heavily dependent on Russian energy sources, could continue to get oil from the huge Druzhba pipeline Russia take care of.
Refineries in Slovakia and the Czech Republic as well as in Poland and eastern Germany are also connected to the line. Germany and Poland have However, it has already been made clear that they will become independent of Russian oil supplies by the end of this year, regardless of an embargo want. Before then, the oil embargo shouldn’t be fully in place anyway.
EU summit: unequal conditions regarding oil exports from Russia feared
According to information from EU circles, the financial commitments now being demanded from Hungary are primarily about funds that the country wants for the medium-term conversion of its oil infrastructure. The government in Budapest estimates the costs for the necessary conversion of refineries to non-Russian oil at up to 550 million euros. In addition, according to the information, 200 million euros must be invested in order to supply the country in the future via a pipeline starting on the Adriatic coast.
According to diplomats, however, the Netherlands have substantive problems with the compromise proposal. They fear that there could be an unlevel playing field in the EU if some states continue to purchase relatively cheap pipeline oil from Russia. This is also relevant because the port of Rotterdam has so far been an important transhipment point for Russian oil and business could initially collapse there as a result of the embargo.
The original proposal by the EU Commission provided for Ukraine War the Completely stop importing Russian crude oil in six months and imports of oil products in eight months. Only Hungary and Slovakia should be given 20 months.
EU summit: emergency solutions without Hungary?
Of the CSUAgainst the background of the discussions, European politician Manfred Weber spoke out against far-reaching compromises in favor of Hungary. “To be honest, I’m tired of the fact that the entire EU always has to follow the most hesitant decisions when it comes to sanctions,” said the chairman of the Christian Democratic EPP Group of the German Press Agency. If the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban against Russia’s President Wladimir Putin necessary unity, intergovernmental solutions without Hungary would have to be sought.
“If there is no other way, then this path must not be ruled out,” said Weber, referring to the option of agreeing on the oil embargo without including Hungary. Orban must be shown that it cannot hold the rest of the EU hostage.
According to EU diplomats at the EU consultations on Sunday, Germany was basically ready to agree to the Commission’s compromise proposal. At the same time, the federal government made it clear that the exemptions are actually not in their interest. (tk/tu/lm with AFP/dpa)