According to a Bloomberg report on Monday, the European Union is preparing a new sanctions package aimed at increasing pressure on Moscow, expected to target Russian banks, energy companies, and oil trade.
This would be the 19th round of sanctions imposed by the EU since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The package could also restrict Russian payment and credit card systems, cryptocurrency exchanges, and third-country oil traders.
According to Bloomberg, EU officials will travel to Washington this week to coordinate possible joint action with US officials.
In a television interview on Sunday, US Treasury Secretary Besant said Washington is pressing Europe to agree on stricter measures. “We are ready to increase pressure on Russia, but we need our European partners to follow suit,” he said.
Besant added that the US and EU are discussing sanctions and secondary tariffs aimed at forcing the Russian economy to collapse and forcing Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table.
While US President Trump has so far avoided direct sanctions against Moscow, he has tightened trade measures against other countries, doubling tariffs on continued purchases of Russian oil by India to 50%.
