EU proposes fresh sanctions on Russia's oil, banks and Nord Stream

Euronews

2 days ago

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, social media has seen a spike in misinformation and videos purporting to show footage of Moscow's war — when the images in reality originate from video games.
For instance, videos allegedly showing Ukraine's Operation Spiderweb — which was carried out by Ukraine's Security Service on 1 June — have been shared widely online.
EuroVerify reviewed a series of these clips, which have racked up hundreds of thousands of views across social media platforms, including TikTok, Facebook and YouTube.
Although at first glance they could appear to show scenes of war — such as missiles, drones, and infrastructure being bombarded — the clips do not have any clear signs which certify their authenticity.
By conducting a reverse image search, EuroVerify found that a number of clips claiming to show Ukraine's Operation Spiderweb have in fact been misleadingly captioned and taken out of context — in reality, they match gaming videos posted by a YouTube channel called UWC.
The channel's biography states that "all videos on the channel are a simulation of combat operations in the game Arma 3. We are against this terrible war and we want a peaceful sky over the heads of Ukrainians."
Despite this mention, the channel — like many other similar gaming channels — posts videos which bare misleading titles such as "Ukrainian most massive drone raid destroys two largest Russian factories 1,000 km from borders" and "Daring Ukrainian FPV drone swarm raid destroys 40 Russian nuclear bombers: Tu-95, Tu-160, Tu-22M".
The gaming developer studio Bohemia Interactive, which created Arma 3, separately reviewed videos sent by EuroVerify, which have been posted across social media platforms, and confirmed that they were made using a "modded" version of Arma 3.
Video game "modding" is a popular activity for gamers, where they customise a game's features or visuals on their own or with the help of third-party plugins and other materials.
Bohemia Interactive, like many other video game developers, has come out against its products being used as 'war propaganda'.
While video game footage has consistently been taken out of context in relation to Russia's war in Ukraine, this is also the case for other wars and conflicts — as video game recordings have also been presented as footage of the Israel-Hamas war, as well as the recent tensions between India and Pakistan on social media.
Determining whether footage is real can be a very complex task, which has even led certain media outlets to air video game clips on TV.
In November 2022, Romanian channel Antena 3 broadcast an old Arma 3 video, which it alleged showed fighting in Ukraine, additionally asking a former defence minister and a former intelligence chief to comment on the images as if they were authentic.
The European Union has formally proposed a fresh round of sanctions against Russia to pressure the Kremlin into accepting a 30-day unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, a step that Western allies consider an indispensable prelude to serious peace negotiations.
If approved by member states, it would mark the 18th package of sanctions since February 2022, the largest regime ever imposed by the bloc.
The latest proposal, unveiled on Tuesday by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and High Representative Kaja Kallas, expands the blacklist of Russian banks and "shadow fleet" tankers. So far, Brussel has targeted over 350 vessels from the poorly kept fleet, which has been accused of engaging in sabotage and vandalism.
The plan also features a ban on the Nord Stream pipelines that connect Russia and Germany underwater. The pipelines are currently non-operational and Berlin has ruled out the prospect of re-starting gas transit after the war comes to an end.
The most notable element of the proposed package is a downward revision of the price cap on Russia's seaborne oil, which was established at G7 level in December 2022.
The cap was set at $60 per barrel of crude and has remained unchanged since then, despite ample fluctuations in Russia's trade and evidence of circumvention. The Nordics and the Baltics have long called for a revision to reflect market dynamics.
In theory, the EU could pass new legislation to bring down the level of the cap on its own in an attempt to further squeeze Moscow's profits. However, doing so without the participation of the United States could create a cacophony and weaken the initiative, which is supposed to have worldwide effect.
Until now, Donald Trump has refused to apply new sanctions against Russia, even if his rhetoric towards Vladimir Putin had hardened over the slow pace in negotiations and the continued barrage of attacks against Ukrainian cities. Trump's position has driven a wedge across the Western front, with the EU, the UK and Canada moving ahead with fresh restrictions while Washington takes a step back.
The tensions in the alliance will come to the fore on Sunday during a G7 summit in Canada, where the revision of the price cap will be high on the agenda.
Meanwhile, EU officials and diplomats insist on piling extra pressure on the Kremlin regardless of the course of action that the White House chooses to take. Trump's direction, though, could influence deliberations in Brussels, as unanimity among the 27 member states is required to approve the 18th package.
Hungary and Slovakia have in recent months ramped up their criticism against sanctions, arguing they cause more damage to the bloc's economy than to Russia's.
Earlier this year, Hungary threatened to veto the renewal of all sectorial sanctions, an against-the-clock experience that prompted officials to start working on legal shortcuts, particularly with a view to protecting the estimated €210 billion in Russia's frozen assets.
Last week, Slovakia's parliament narrowly passed a resolution urging the government to oppose further trade restrictions against Russia.
"If there is a sanction that would harm us, I will never vote for it," Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said after the vote in parliament. "I am interested in being a constructive player in the European Union, but not at the expense of Slovakia."
Still, for all their antagonistic talk, neither Hungary nor Slovakia has gone as far as completely preventing the adoption of a new package of sanctions.
Nine people were killed in a school shooting in the Austrian city of Graz on Tuesday, according to interior ministry officials and the domestic press.
Mayor Elke Kahr, who initially said that eight people — seven students and one adult —were among the dead, described the event as a 'terrible tragedy,' the Austria Press Agency reported. Kahr said that many people were taken to hospitals with injuries.
Kahr later said that the death toll rose to 10, but it was unclear whether this figure includes the alleged perpetrator, who also died in the aftermath of the attack. The police confirmed that the figure included the attacker.
The Austrian interior ministry previously confirmed there were several casualties, but has not revealed any further details.
State broadcaster ORF reported that students and teachers were among those injured. At least 30 people were admitted to hospital for treatment in relation to the shooting, with some seriously injured, the local press said.
The suspected perpetrator, reportedly a former student armed with a pistol and a shotgun, killed himself when approached by armed police officers.
A police operation was under way at the BORG high school on Dreierschuetzengasse street on Tuesday morning.
Graz Police spokesperson Sabri Yorgun said special Cobra units were among those sent to the high school after a call was received at 10 am, and that authorities were working to gain an overview of what had happened.
Other emergency services and a helicopter were dispatched to the scene.
At 11:30 am, police wrote on social network X that the school had been evacuated and everyone had been taken to a safe meeting point.
They wrote that the situation was 'secured' and it was no longer believed to be any danger.
Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker said the shooting 'is a national tragedy that deeply shocks our whole country.'
'There are no words for the pain and grief that all of us — the whole of Austria — feel now,' he wrote in a statement posted on X.
President Alexander Van der Bellen said that 'this horror cannot be captured in words.'
'These were young people who had their whole lives ahead of them. A teacher who accompanied them on their way,' he said.
'Schools are symbols for youth, hope and the future,' European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X. 'It is hard to bear when schools become places of death and violence.'
Graz is a city of some 300,000 and is the capital of the southern Austrian province of Styria.