EU grapples with how to navigate Trump’s demands on Russian oil

According to people familiar with the issue, the European Union (EU) weighs Russia’s sanctions on Russia’s oil trade as part of a new restriction package to companies in India and China.

US President Donald Trump said he was ready to progress with “big” sanctions on Russian oil if European countries do the same during the weekend. The penalties would target President Vladimir Putin’s energy trade, which is very important to finance the war against Ukraine, especially from China and India.

The US pressure puts it in Europe, which gradually postponed Russian gas by 2027 and has given temporary exemptions from Russian oil sanctions to countries surrounded by land, such as Hungary and Slovakia. Nevertheless, the crude oil from Moscow fell to approximately 3% last year from 27% of the EU imports before the war after the sanctions entered into force from 2022 onwards.
The EU will currently target the 19th sanction package against Russia, approximately half dozen Russian banks and energy companies, Russia’s payment and credit card systems, crypto exchanges, and more restrictions on the country’s oil trade.

The US’s own proposal, which was thrown into the group of seven members last week, contains up to 100% tariffs in China and India. It will also target Russian oil companies and networks of Moscow to move from raw and profit to trade.

The EU would also have to find a way to overcome the resistance from its member states, especially Hungary and Slovakia, expressing concerns about the costs of shifts to alternative oil materials. The EU can evaluate various measures to address such concerns when exemption is abolished for nations.