Separate from LNG, the sanctions package will propose penalties on more aging oil-exporting tankers operating as part of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, the diplomats added. The EU will target 74 new vessels, two other EU diplomats said.
Additionally, the new offering will push to restrict Moscow’s aluminum exports, according to the three diplomats. The EU still relies on Russia for around 6 percent of its aluminum imports.
Finally, the package will target video game equipment, like Microsoft’s Xbox, that the EU says Russia is using to pilot drones.
Still, the LNG omission will disappoint the bloc’s Russia hawks. Last month, 10 EU countries — including Finland, Poland and the Baltics — called on the European Commission to “ban the import of Russian gas and LNG at the earliest date possible.”
“It’s a pity,” Lithuanian Energy Minister Žygimantas Vaičiūnas told POLITICO. “To a certain extent, we are disappointed.”
But Vaičiūnas insisted the country was holding out hope for an upcoming EU “roadmap” to end all Russian energy ties.
