Kallas expects new EU sanctions on Russia 'today or tomorrow'

A meeting of EU foreign ministers will be held in Brussels. The topics of the meeting will be the 18th package of sanctions against Russia and the war in the Gaza Strip. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha will participate in the meeting via video link.

Before the meeting, EU diplomacy chief Kaja Kallas said that the EU is very close to adopting the sanctions.

"We hope that we will adopt the 18th package of sanctions today or tomorrow," Kallas said, adding that "there is still a lot to do."

The package has not yet been adopted due to the position of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico. He opposes the European Commission's plan to completely ban Russian gas imports and wants to use his veto power to get concessions. Another controversial issue is the reduction of the price cap on Russian oil.

"We are working on this oil price cap," Kallas added.

New sanctions against Russia

The European Union is working on the 18th package of sanctions against Moscow, which could be one of the strongest since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The package provides for further restrictions against individuals and organizations, as well as against the shadow fleet of the Kremlin. The EU also plans to reduce the oil price cap set by the G7 countries from $60 to $45.

However, the package cannot be adopted because of the blocking of some EU countries. For example, Slovakia is opposed because of the European Commission's plan to completely ban Russian gas. According to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, the country has received guarantees from the European Commission.

According to Politico, Malta also objected when the new package of sanctions was adopted.