European Union members are expected to agree on an embargo on Russian crude oil imports as early as next week, according to officials, which would settle a dispute among its members.
Such a measure has been discussed for weeks – with the United States putting pressure on the group to do its part to stop funding Russia with its oil and gas shipment payments.
According to the New York Times, the EU will discuss the matter further over the weekend, with the European Commission drafting the final proposal and submitting it to EU ambassadors for approval. Those ambassadors are due to meet next Wednesday, with final approval expected by the end of the week, anonymous EU officials told the New York Times.
There’s no indication how sweeping or complete an embargo would be, but it’s clear that some sort of embargo is on the horizon.
The EU gets a quarter of its crude oil from Russia. Analysts have suggested that a total EU crude oil ban would result in significant financial damage and that Russia may not be able to find enough willing buyers to take over the oil that is normally shipped to the EU. Such a financial hit could hurt Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ability to continue funding the war in Ukraine.
There are also longer-term effects. If Russia can’t find a market for all of its crude after an EU crude embargo, Russia could be forced to cut production — production that may not be able to restart.
By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com
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