The European Union is considering the possibility of easing anti-Russian sanctions only after peace is established in Ukraine and the threat of a new invasion by the Russian Federation has disappeared. This was stated by the EU’s special representative for sanctions, David O’Sullivan, who noted that any easing of sanctions will not occur in advance while risks to Ukrainian security remain.
This is reported by Бізнес • Медіа
Moscow’s attempts to circumvent sanctions and maintain financial ties
According to O’Sullivan, Russia is currently trying to achieve the return of “Rosselkhozbank” to the international payment system SWIFT. Restoring access to this system would allow Russian financial institutions to conduct transactions with European and American partners. At the same time, he emphasized that despite the sanctions, Russia still has limited access to certain components necessary for weapon production.
“According to our estimates, it is paying for these components possibly 600% more than before the war. So such supplies have become less reliable and much more expensive, although not impossible,” he said.
Slovakia’s position on the new sanctions package
Meanwhile, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has instructed Foreign Minister Juraj Blanár to initiate a postponement of the EU vote on the next package of sanctions against Russia, which was scheduled for June 18. According to the Slovak Prime Minister, the country seeks guarantees of stable supplies of Russian gas and aims to avoid a significant increase in energy prices for the population.