Latest news with #JuliaPayne
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Factbox-What's in the EU's new Russia sanctions
By Julia Payne BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union adopted on Tuesday its 17th package of sanctions against Russia over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The package hits 75 entities with full-fledged sanctions that include asset freezes and financing bans, bringing the total listing to over 2,400 entities and individuals. EU countries also adopted three other sets of measures to tackle chemical weapons, human rights abuses and hybrid threats. Here are the key details: SHADOW FLEET, OIL * 189 shadow fleet vessels added to list, including 183 oil tankers. The vessels help Moscow keep its crude exports flowing, circumventing Western sanctions. * EU now lists 342 Russian shadow fleet vessels, including tankers and vessels moving military equipment * New listings include major Russia oil company Surgutneftegaz and Russian shipping firm Insurance Joint Stock Company 'VSK' * Eiger Shipping DMCC, the Dubai shipping arm of Russian oil trader Litasco. Litasco is the trading arm of Russia's No. 2 oil producer Lukoil * Four companies involved in managing Russia's shadow fleet: two in the United Arab Emirates, one in Turkey and one in Hong Kong MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX * EU lists six companies in China: three for providing high-tech machine tools and three for supplying critical components, including for drones * One company in Belarus that exports military equipment to Russia and an Israeli firm involved in sanctions circumvention and supplying products for Russia's military * One Russian gold mining entity Petropavlovsk * 31 entities will face stricter export restrictions on dual-use goods and technology, with 13 from outside Russia and the EU: six in Turkey, three in Vietnam, two in UAE, one in Uzbekistan and one in Serbia HYBRID THREATS REGIME * EU adds 27 entities and individuals to its hybrid threat sanctions framework for facilitating violence in the EU, Ukraine and Africa * These include a Turkish media entity and an individual for involvement in German demonstrations * A British web-hosting entity involved in cyberattacks and two Moldovan nationals * Individuals linked to activities in Africa including a Russian news agency and an NGO in Central African Republic * Sets up new legal basis for future sanctions relating to fleets that aim to hit infrastructure (undersea cables, airports and servers), financial enablers and propaganda outlets CHEMICALS AND HUMAN RIGHTS REGIMES * Three listings in Russia for production of riot control gas used in the battlefield * 28 listings for human rights, including individuals involved in politically motivated trials * The human rights listing includes 20 judges and prosecutors involved in the cases against Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny who died last year
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
EU countries adopt four sets of new Russia sanctions
By Julia Payne BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The EU adopted four sets of sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine on Tuesday, including a 17th package targeting Moscow's shadow fleet, and measures related to chemical weapons, human rights and hybrid threats, the European Commission said on Tuesday. The EU and its Western allies have been progressively cracking down on Russia's shadow fleet of tankers and related actors, which work to circumvent the Group of Seven nations (G7) price cap on Russian crude in place since late 2022. The cap was designed to allow Russian oil to be sold to third countries using Western insurance services provided the price was no more than $60 a barrel. However, the crackdown has started to bite and the EU will push for a lower price cap this week during a meeting of G7 finance ministers in Canada. Oil and gas exports are one of Russia's main sources of revenue, which finance its war in Ukraine. The four new sets of measures will hit over 130 entities and individuals. As part of the 17th package, the EU will list 75 new entities including major Russian oil firm Surgutneftegaz, a shipping insurance company and four shadow fleet management firms involved in the UAE, Turkey and Hong Kong, EU sources said. EU diplomats briefly weighed imposing sanctions on the Dubai branch of Litasco, the trading arm of Russia's No. 2 oil producer Lukoil, but it was deleted from the list owing to Hungarian opposition and a weak legal basis, EU sources said. However, they did list Litasco's Dubai shipping arm Eiger Shipping DMCC. Another 189 vessels, of which 183 are oil tankers, have been added to the list, taking the total number of listed vessels to 324. The EU has been in dialogue with countries that provide tanker registrations in an effort to cut off Moscow's use of so-called flags of convenience, referring to those registered to countries other than their actual owner. In the latest round, the flags used included African countries such as Sierra Leone, Gabon and Comoros, Caribbean and Pacific islands, India, Azerbaijan and the landlocked European state of San Marino, the sources added. The package also tightens measures around the sale of dual-use items, which are products or technology that can be repurposed by Russia's military, and lists entities which support Russia's military industrial complex in China, Belarus and Israel.
The Star
14-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Pre-war EU-Ukraine trade deal may temporarily return when tariff suspension expires
FILE PHOTO: Farmers hold signs and flags at a protest against cheap non-EU imports, the trade agreement between the South American countries of Mercosur, and duty-free imports from Ukraine, at the Czech-Slovak border near the town of Holic, Slovakia, February 27, 2025. REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa/File Photo BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The EU is weighing a temporary return to its pre-war trade agreement with Ukraine if a renegotiated deal is not ready to take effect when war-related tariff suspensions expire on June 5, EU diplomats said on Wednesday. The Commission proposed this transitional period would last seven months or until a new deal can come into effect. The EU temporarily waived duties and quotas on agriculture products in June 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion to help Ukraine compensate for the higher costs of its exports via the EU, after Russia threatened its traditional Black Sea shipping lanes. "That regulation, suspending all tariff-rate June 5, 2025, following which trade between the Union and Ukraine reverts to the rules established under the Association Agreement," the proposal showed, referring to a 2014 agreement. "Taking into account the tariff rate quotas under the Association Agreement are established for a full calendar tariff rate quotas will be pro-rated on a proportional basis for the remainder of the calendar year." Ukraine's finance minister said on Wednesday he was in talks with the EU to renew the emergency measures but the Commission said no extension was planned. "The Commission is not planning to propose an extension of the ATMs (tariff suspension)... because we are currently working on the review of the EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Trade Area," the spokesperson said. "In this review process, our priority will be the gradual compliance of Ukraine with EU production standards, and a safeguard clause that could be triggered to prevent any disturbance to the EU and Ukrainian markets." EU farmers have repeatedly protested against a sudden influx of cheaper products from Ukraine and the Commission introduced "emergency brakes" on imports of poultry, sugar, oats, maize, groats, and honey if these exceed the yearly average in 2021-2023. The Commission has been eyeing a sharp cut to Ukrainian sugar imports amid complaints that large shipments have fuelled a collapse in prices. The EU is Ukraine's largest trade partner and Ukraine is the third-largest supplier of agri-food products to the EU, according to EU data. (Reporting by Julia Payne and Philip Blenkinsop; Additional reporting by Jan Strupczewski; Editing by Toby Chopra)
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Pre-war EU-Ukraine trade deal may temporarily return when tariff suspension expires
By Julia Payne and Philip Blenkinsop BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The EU is weighing a temporary return to its pre-war trade agreement with Ukraine if a renegotiated deal is not ready to take effect when war-related tariff suspensions expire on June 5, EU diplomats said on Wednesday. The Commission proposed this transitional period would last seven months or until a new deal can come into effect. The EU temporarily waved duties and quotas on agri-food products in June 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion to help Ukraine compensate for the higher costs of its exports via the EU, after Russia threatened its traditional Black Sea shipping lanes. Ukraine's finance minister said on Wednesday he was in talks with the EU to renew the emergency measures but the Commission said no extension was planned. "The Commission is not planning to propose an extension of the ATMs (tariff suspension)... because we are currently working on the review of the EU-Ukraine Deep and Comprehensive Trade Area (DCFTA)," the spokesperson said. "In this review process, our priority will be the gradual compliance of Ukraine with EU production standards, and a safeguard clause that could be triggered to prevent any disturbance to the EU and Ukrainian markets." EU farmers have repeatedly protested against a sudden influx of cheaper products from Ukraine and the Commission introduced "emergency brakes" on imports of poultry, sugar, oats, maize, groats, and honey if these exceed the yearly average in 2021-2023. The Commission has been eying a sharp cut to Ukrainian sugar imports complaints that large shipments have fuelled a collapse in prices. The EU is Ukraine's largest trade partner and Ukraine is the third largest supplier of agri-food products to the EU, according to EU data.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
EU envoys discuss sanctions related to Russia chemical weapons use
By Julia Payne BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission has proposed listing 15 additional new entities and individuals to its sanctions framework on Russian hybrid threats as well as individuals suspected of using chemical weapons in Ukraine, EU sources said on Wednesday. Russia is waging a more than three-year-old full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The world's chemical weapons watchdog OPCW said in November last year it had found evidence of tear gas use on Ukraine's frontline with Russia without assigning blame. The use of riot-control agents such as tear gas as a method of warfare is prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention, the non-proliferation treaty overseen by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). The United States and Ukraine have accused Moscow of violating the convention. The Kremlin has denied these accusations. EU envoys began discussions on a 17th package of sanctions against Russia on Wednesday that focuses on Russia's military machine as well as Moscow's shadow shipping fleet and its support system. These two packages as well as a third set of measures that would add 25 entities and individuals, mainly the latter, suspected of violating human rights were being discussed in parallel. As part of the 17th package, member states are expected to agree to list about 140 new ships, mainly tankers, and 70 entities and individuals over the next week. New listings are initiated by the EU's diplomatic arm, the EEAS, whereas sector-wide sanctions are led by the Commission. Sources said the EU is likely to list major Russian oil company Surgutneftegaz, which Washington targeted in January as part of a sweeping crackdown on Russia's energy trade. (Reporting by Julia Payne; editing by Mark Heinrich, Kirsten Donovan)
