Russia will ‘minimise’ the impact of new European sanctions, says Kremlin spokesman
Russia will ensure that the impact of the new European sanctions is “minimised,” government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday. He thus responded to the approval of a new package of sanctions against his country because of the war in Ukraine.
“The new package (of sanctions, ed.) must of course be analysed in order to minimise the consequences,” Peskov said during the daily press briefing. “On top of that, every new package has a negative effect on the countries that participate in it,” said the Kremlin spokesman, who spoke of “a double-edged sword”.
Peskov reiterated that Moscow considers the European sanctions illegal and will continue to fight them. But according to the spokesman, his country has “acquired a certain immunity” in recent years. “We have adapted to life under sanctions,” Peskov assured.
On Friday morning, the member states of the European Union agreed on a new package of sanctions, the 18th since Russia invaded its neighbour in February 2022 and, according to High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas, “one of the toughest to date”.
The new package amongst others targets Russia's revenues from oil sales. The EU wants to lower the price cap on those exports to 47.6 dollars per barrel and impose sanctions on an additional 105 ships belonging to the so-called shadow fleet that Moscow uses to circumvent the cap.
In addition, the package also includes a ban on imports of refined products based on Russian crude oil and measures to prevent the restart of the Nord Stream I and II gas pipelines. There will also be a total ban on transactions with the international payment system Swift, which will be extended to more than twenty additional Russian banks.
Reaction China
The package also includes additional sanctions against companies and organisations from third countries that help Russia circumvent the sanctions or support Russia's military industry. Amongst others, seven Chinese entities are being added, which is not well received in China. Beijing is threatening retaliatory measures.
Europe must stop harming the interests of Chinese companies without a factual basis, said spokesperson Lin Jian of the ministry of foreign Affairs in Beijing. According to him, the government will take the necessary measures to protect the rights of domestic companies.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov at a meeting between Russian president Vladimir Putin and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva © BELGA PHOTO Alexander Shcherbak/TASS via ZUMA Press