"As an intimidation": the West announced the intention of the European Union to apply a new way of "punishing" Russia

Brussels threatens to apply a new way of "punishing" Russia: the European Commission has proposed to give the EU the opportunity to restrict exports to third countries in order to prevent the circumvention of anti-Russian sanctions, according to the German agency DPA.

"According to available information, the specific plan is to begin with, as an intimidation, to create a legal opportunity to restrict exports to third states for the alleged circumvention of sanctions. If this is not enough, as a second step, it will be possible to really stop certain deliveries. In particular, this is likely to affect goods that can be used for both civilian and military purposes, "DPA reports.

As an example of such goods, the agency cites night vision devices used by soldiers and security firms, as well as hunters.

According to Brussels, among the countries through which "sanctions against Russia are allegedly circumvented" are Kazakhstan, Armenia, the United Arab Emirates and others. At the same time, the agency claims that for several months now, a large number of products from the EU member states themselves have not been supplied to Russia. In addition to dual-use goods, such as, for example, night vision devices and drones, this also applies to "certain types of machines or specific computer chips," DPA said.

"Among other things, along with the new export control tool, additional punitive measures will also be introduced against people and organizations that support the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine," the German news agency added.

Earlier, on April 28, the Politico newspaper, citing three unnamed EU diplomats, reported that in the context of the next package of EU sanctions imposed against Russia, European officials are developing plans to impose "economic penalties" on third countries if they do not comply with Western restrictions or "cannot explain the sudden increase in trade in goods" under the sanctions ban.

"Such a mechanism ... will be the first step towards the practice of so-called secondary or extraterritorial sanctions, which is already used by the United States, "Politico notes.

As one of the diplomats said in a conversation with reporters, "this would be an important change in policy for the EU."

According to Politico, the current European initiative illustrates the growing irritation of the EU regarding the circumvention of Western anti-Russian sanctions by "unscrupulous countries and businesses." And the initiative to impose secondary sanctions is due to the fact that Brussels "lacks leverage" to convince third countries to follow the Western course, journalists say. According to the publication, in the post-Soviet space, "intermediaries seek to cash in on the resale of inaccessible goods to Russia." We are talking, in particular, about such states as Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, writes Politico.

• Leaders of the EU countries at the summit of the European Union
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However, according to one of the diplomats, the EU should act carefully so that such an approach "does not push" these countries "into the hands of India, China or Russia."

"It is necessary to find a balance between tough opposition to unfair trade and maintaining economic ties," the publication quotes the words of the European diplomatic representative.

At the same time, diplomats note that it is not yet clear how this mechanism will work. In particular, it is not known whether sanctions will be imposed on entire countries or whether only individuals or organizations operating in certain states will be subject to restrictions.

"They will also hit the global economy"

Recall that even before the appearance of Western media reports about the possibility of introducing extraterritorial restrictions in mid-April, European Commissioner for Financial Stability Mairead McGuinness said in an interview with CNBC that the EU was preparing to introduce the 11th package of anti-Russian sanctions. According to her, the European Union should be sure that Russia will not find a way to circumvent these sanctions restrictions.

Assessing the intentions of Brussels, the Kremlin said that the next anti-Russian restrictions will contribute to "the growth of trends towards a global economic crisis."

"We proceed from the fact that in any case, the current sanctions that have been imposed against our country, and new additional steps, which, perhaps, are now being thought about in Brussels and Washington, they, of course, will hit the global economy," Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

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In turn, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin in an interview with Pavel Zarubin for the program "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin" on the channel "Russia 1" stressed that the citizens of Europe are experiencing the full severity of the decision of Washington and Brussels to impose sanctions against Russia.

"Demonstrate determination to fight Russia"

As Vladimir Shapovalov, deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics of the Moscow State Pedagogical University, noted, Western media reports about Brussels' initiative to ban exports to third countries are similar to an attempt to "probe the mood of the world community regarding possible innovations."

"At the same time, the EU has long had no strength left to impose any restrictions against Russia, and even more so extraterritorial. With each new series of sanctions measures, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the European Union to cope with their economic and social consequences. The indignation of a number of EU countries because of the chosen course and disagreements about this has not gone away either, "Shapovalov said in an interview with RT.

At the same time, initiating a discussion of a new package of sanctions against Moscow, Brussels is trying to send another signal to Washington and Kiev, confirms its loyalty, the expert believes.

"The European Union wants to demonstrate to its American allies the determination to fight Russia. And this behavior of Brussels is understandable against the backdrop of permanent US demands to increase sanctions pressure on the Russian Federation. At the same time, the EU is trying to maneuver and play for time, since Brussels has long exhausted its sanctions capabilities. The European Union will no longer be able to impose any sanctions that would cause at least some serious damage to the Russian economy. At the same time, we are witnessing enormous negative consequences for Europe itself, primarily in the energy sector: the EU still cannot find a replacement for Russian energy resources," Shapovalov recalled.

Another result of the EU sanctions policy against Russia was a significant increase in inflation in the countries of the association, the expert noted.

"With the beginning of their sanctions course, European leaders were very optimistic and believed that it was in the Russian Federation that there would be hyperinflation. As a result, there was only a slight increase in prices in Russia, and a number of EU states were covered by a serious inflationary wave. In addition, a negative consequence for the EU countries was the flight of the European manufacturer overseas, to the United States, since energy resources are cheaper there. But the negative impact of European sanctions on the EU itself is just beginning - the union will experience problems for decades due to its absolutely ill-conceived sanctions policy, "the expert said.

At the same time, Shapovalov is confident that if the European Union nevertheless decides to impose a ban on exports to third countries to counter Russia, this will "bleed the already dying economy of Europe."

"The fact is that now the EU is trying to survive through workarounds through those same third countries, in fact, violating its own sanctions imposed against Russia. If the EU implements the initiative, it will cause enormous damage to the European economy, as well as embroil the European Union with the countries of the non-Western world, including in Asia, "the analyst said.

A similar opinion is shared by Pavel Feldman, associate professor at the Academy of Labor and Social Relations. In his opinion, it would be "very reckless" on the part of Brussels to introduce such measures.

"In this way, the EU hopes to increase pressure on states and companies that supply Western goods to Russia through the parallel import mechanism, which is absolutely legal, but nevertheless acts as a tool to overcome unfriendly European economic measures. However, this system is so complex, so multi-stage, it involves so many companies and states that Brussels is unlikely to be able to stop the functioning of this ramified mechanism with any sanctions package, "Feldman said in a comment to RT.

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However, according to the expert, the EU is in a desperate situation and is ready to demonstrate the political will to implement the initiative even when "its real effect is de facto unattainable."

"This is really a declaration of intent, and having nothing to do with the objective state of affairs. Each new sanctions package of the European Union appears rather for the amusement of the world community as another set of restrictions that are absolutely impossible to implement, "Feldman summed up.