Results in EU Parliament Vote on Russia Sanctions Expected
The European Parliament is expected to receive the results of a vote on expanding sanctions against the Russian Federation today.
The vote will likely result in a continuation of the “push back, contain and engage” strategy put forth by the parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs in July 2021. The strategy emphasizes the need to push back against aggressive Russian policies, while differentiating the Russian government from the Russian people and engaging with civil society. The Council of the European Union previously extended sanctions against Russia in June 2021 for violating the Minsk Agreement with its actions towards Ukraine. This round of sanctions will limit access to EU capital markets for Russian banks and companies and prohibit financial assistance towards Russian financial institutions.
A vote in favor of sanctions will be a reflection of the strained relationship between the EU and Russia since the 2014 invasion of Crimea. However, the Nordstream 2, a Russian oil pipeline in Europe was finally given the green light despite previous sanctions that delayed work on the project. As such, extending sanctions is unlikely to deter Russia from violating the Minsk Agreement, through the issuing of Russian passports to Ukrainian citizens in Crimea and the Donbass.
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