The European Commission has proposed a new package of sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, targeting energy, financial flows and trade.
This 20th package was proposed, as explained by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, because Russia is deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure and energy facilities and heating systems, leaving a large part of the population without electricity during freezing days.
"This is not the behavior of a country that wants peace. This is the behavior of a country that is waging a war of attrition against innocent civilians. As important peace talks are held in Abu Dhabi, we must be clear: Russia will only come to the negotiating table if it is pressured. This is the only language Russia understands," she said.
The European Commission said in a statement that Russia had occupied only 0,8 percent of Ukrainian territory despite heavy human losses.
She stated that the new package introduces a complete ban on maritime services for Russian crude oil, and that they have listed 43 more "shadow fleet" ships that are evading international sanctions, bringing their total number to 640.
"This will further reduce Russia's energy revenues and make it more difficult to find buyers for its oil," von der Leyen added.
They also want the new package to make it more difficult for Russia to procure tankers that would be used for this fleet, and to introduce a comprehensive ban on providing maintenance and other services to LNG tankers and icebreakers.
It would also restrict the Russian banking system from creating alternative payment channels to finance economic activity.
"This is Russia's weak point and we are acting strongly on it. We are naming 20 more Russian regional banks and introducing measures against cryptocurrencies, companies that trade them and platforms that enable crypto trading, in order to close the ways of circumventing sanctions," the Commission President added.
Sanctions are also imposed on banks in third countries that are involved in facilitating illegal trade in sanctioned goods.
The third block of measures tightens exports to Russia, introducing new bans on goods and services - from tires to tractors and cybersecurity services, worth over 360 million euros.
"We are also introducing new import bans on metals, chemicals and critical minerals that have not been sanctioned so far, totaling more than 570 million euros. We are further introducing additional export restrictions on items and technologies used in Russia's military efforts, including materials for the production of explosives. We are also proposing a quota for the import of ammonia to limit existing quantities," she said.
Stronger legal protections have been proposed for EU companies to protect them from copyright infringement or unfair expropriation.
Russia's oil and gas revenues, the Commission said, fell by 24 percent in 2025 compared to the previous year, the lowest level since 2020. Oil and gas revenues, it added, will be the lowest in January since the start of the war.
"This confirms what we already knew: our sanctions are working and we will continue to apply them until Russia engages in serious negotiations with Ukraine for a just and lasting peace," von der Leyen said.
She called on member states to support new sanctions to send a "strong signal" ahead of the fourth anniversary of the war.
She also stated that the EU is developing a peace plan with the US and the Coalition of the Willing that includes strong security guarantees for Ukraine.
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