By Julia Payne
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Union’s 19th package of sanctions against Russia will list four companies involved in China’s oil industry that circumvent Western restrictions, EU diplomatic sources said on Wednesday.
They said the package lists two independent Chinese oil refineries, a Chinese trading firm and an entity involved in circumvention. The latter is mostly involved in sectors outside oil, they said. The sources declined to provide further details.
The EU has toughened its stance on Beijing as diplomatic efforts have stalled. EU sanctions envoy David O’Sullivan told Reuters earlier this month that China still denies doing anything other than “normal trade” three years into Russia’s war in Ukraine. The EU, Ukraine and its allies view China as a central node in Moscow’s sanctions circumvention network.
NEW SANCTIONS EXPECTED TO BE ADOPTED THIS WEEK
The Chinese listings are not the EU’s first but they are the most economically significant. In previous packages, the EU listed Chinese entities involved in drone-making and the flow of dual-use goods to Russia. In July, Brussels listed two small Chinese banks, which prompted China to retaliate in August with bans on two Lithuanian banks.
The final text of the package has been approved by EU member states but it has not been adopted yet owing to reservations from Slovakia on unrelated matters. Sanctions require unanimity to be passed.
EU diplomats expect the package, which was initially proposed a month ago, to be adopted before the end of this week. Other elements in the package include a ban on Russian liquefied natural gas from January 2027 as well as new measures on the so-called shadow tanker fleet, Russia’s military-industrial complex and the movement of its diplomats.
The EU had been eyeing some Chinese refineries since the summer for buying Russian crude from Moscow’s already sanctioned shadow fleet. In tandem with Group of Seven nations, the EU is trying to further drain Russia’s means to fund its war in Ukraine by squeezing vital oil and gas revenues.
Meanwhile, non-EU Britain last week listed Russia’s biggest oil companies Rosneft and Lukoil, a Chinese refinery and several Chinese ports as subject to sanctions.
(Reporting by Julia Payne. Editing by Mark Heinrich and Mark Potter)
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