EU ambassadors fail to agree on 10th sanctions package due to Russian rubber — Politico
On Wednesday, the President of the European Commission stated that the tenth package of EU sanctions against Russia would be introduced by February 24
BRUSSELS, February 16. /TASS/. The need for Russian-made synthetic rubber was one of the reasons why the ambassadors of the EU countries could not agree on a new package of sanctions against Russia on Wednesday, the European version of the Politico newspaper reported on Thursday citing its own sources.
According to the documents received by the publication, the European Commission (EC) proposed to include in the 10th package of anti-Russian sanctions a ban on the import of synthetic rubber produced in Russia.
"EU ambassadors didn’t reach an agreement on the next sanctions package last night. One of the contentious points is synthetic rubber, which the Commission wants to sanction, according to draft documents obtained by Politico," the newspaper said.
On Wednesday, the President of the European Commission stated that the tenth package of EU sanctions against Russia would be introduced by February 24. It implies trade restrictions in the amount of 11 billion euros, she said. According to her, the new EU package will close the gaps that exist in previous packages of sanctions.
Commenting on these statements, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said on the air of the Rossiya-24 TV channel that Moscow has the tools to respond to the tenth package of EU sanctions against it.