Ukraine has already called on the 27-nation EU to include Russian state nuclear energy company Rosatom in its next round of sanctions
\n BRUSSELS
\nPoland and Lithuania want the European Union to impose restrictions on Russia\u2019s nuclear sector as part of new sanctions against Moscow and Minsk for the war in Ukraine, senior diplomats from the two EU countries said on Friday.
\nThe EU\u2019s leading Russia hawks will propose that the bloc bans more \u201cRussian propaganda\u201d media outlets and cuts more Russian banks from the SWIFT global messaging system, the diplomats said, asking not to be identified.
\n\u201cIt is more and more difficult to get the necessary unanimity in the EU for more sanctions. Nonetheless, we will propose an ambitious new package,\u201d said one of the diplomats.
\nThey said the 10th EU package of sanctions since Russia invaded Ukraine should be ready in time for the first anniversary of the invasion on Feb. 24.
\nThey wanted new sanctions against Russia\u2019s ally Belarus, where they said loopholes allowed it to bypass European sanctions against Moscow in trading goods including furniture.
\nThat chimes with an announcement earlier this month by the EU\u2019s chief executive, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, that the bloc would impose sanctions against Belarus for aiding Russia in the war.
\nRussia used Belarus as a springboard to invade Ukraine and since October has deployed troops in Belarus for joint military drills.
\nUkraine has already called on the 27-nation EU to include Russian state nuclear energy company Rosatom in its next round of sanctions, a move that has so far been blocked by Hungary, among others.
\nHungary has four Russian-built nuclear reactors and plans to expand that by two, to be built by Rosatom.
\n\u201cAre you comfortable with a partner like that? Who invades a neighboring country while also building your nuclear plant?,\u201d said a senior Ukrainian diplomat attending the same meeting on Friday with the EU diplomats in the bloc\u2019s hub Brussels.
\nThey proposed that Rosatom and\/or its leadership be blacklisted as a first step that should then lead to winding down cooperation in the EU with Russia\u2019s nuclear industry.
\nThe EU currently has some 1,300 individuals and 120 entities blacklisted over Russia\u2019s war in Ukraine, as well as economic sanctions in place that include the trade, transport, energy, banking, media and defense sectors.
\nThe senior diplomats said they would also try again to end Belgium\u2019s diamond trade with Russia through new EU sanctions and expand bans on trade in goods that can be used for military purposes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ukraine has already called on the 27-nation EU to include Russian state nuclear energy company Rosatom in its next round of sanctions BRUSSELS Poland and Lithuania want the European Union to impose restrictions on Russia\u2019s nuclear sector as part of new sanctions against Moscow and Minsk for the war in Ukraine, senior diplomats from the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":307397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-307383","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n