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The EU has hit back over the war crimes being committed on its borders with a fifth round of economic sanctions on Russia to maintain pressure on Putin and his government.
The sanctions will target Russian coal exports in the first move to hit Moscow’s energy sector.
But yet again, the question of gas appeared to be off the table.
“It really will be gas in particular that will be the most important to cut off”, Vicky Pryce, Chief Economic Adviser at the Centre for Economics and Business Research, told Euronews.
Europe relies on Russia for around 40% of its gas supply. Countries such as Germany and the Netherlands are significantly dependent on the resource and have so far opposed calls to target Moscow’s gas with Western punitive measures.
Despite four previous rounds of Western sanctions and the subsequent crash of the ruble, Russia’s currency has now bounced back to almost its pre-war value. Moscow’s introduction of capital controls appears to have strengthened the rouble, along with rising interest and inflation rates, admits Pryce.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Moscow may curb food exports to countries it deems “hostile”.
Speaking at a meeting with Russia’s agricultural sector, Putin also said that a possible nationalisation of the country’s energy assets abroad is “a double-edged weapon”.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU needed to increase the pressure on Putin after what she described as “heinous crimes” carried out around Kyiv, with evidence that Russian troops may have deliberately killed Ukrainian civilians.
Von der Leyen said the ban on coal imports is worth €4 billion per year and that the EU has already started working on additional sanctions, including on oil imports.
Watch the interview with CEBR’s Vicky Pryce in the player above.
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