The bloc could return to discussing the subject next month, according to Hungarian Finance Minister Mihaly Varga
European Union member states have not yet reached an agreement on a new round of sanctions against Russia, Hungarian Finance Minister Mihaly Varga said on Tuesday. Speaking to reporters ahead of an EU Council meeting in Luxembourg, Varga indicated that member states might resume discussions on the matter next month.
“There is currently no consensus on the topic of sanctions. We will likely revisit this issue in November,” Varga stated. The minister had previously expressed concerns that sanctions have been ineffective and only serve to weaken Europe.
Over the past two years, the EU has imposed 14 rounds of restrictions on Russia in response to the Ukraine conflict. These measures have been presented as a way to force Moscow to end its military operations by destabilizing the country’s economy. The sanctions have included blacklisting prominent Russian individuals and entities, trade bans, tariff hikes, and the freezing of Russian assets held abroad.
Dozens of companies in third countries, such as China and the UAE, have also been targeted for allegedly supplying dual-use goods and technologies to Russia. The most recent sanctions, implemented in July, targeted the shipping of Russian liquefied natural gas and the country’s payment system.
Many EU officials have complained that it is becoming increasingly difficult to decide what to sanction, particularly since Hungary assumed the six-month rotating presidency of the EU Council. Budapest has been reluctant to sanction Russia from the outset and has repeatedly blocked certain measures from being implemented. For example, some EU members, particularly the Baltic states and Poland, have been pushing for an end to nuclear cooperation with Moscow, which Hungary considers a ‘red line.’
According to an August report by Euractiv, citing diplomatic sources, Hungary’s opposition could make it impossible for members to agree on a 15th round of sanctions, at least until the end of Hungary’s presidency.
Moscow has consistently denounced the measures targeting its economy and trade as illegal. Many observers, both in Russia and the West, have acknowledged that the sanctions have caused more harm to the countries imposing them than to Russia itself.