Source: France 24 [French state media]
“The EU has approved a fresh package of sanctions on Russia, clamping down on its ‘shadow’ oil fleet as Europe threatens further punishment if Moscow does not agree to a Ukraine ceasefire. The United States and Europe should use ‘devastating’ sanctions to ‘take Russia by the throat’ to make it agree to a truce, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said in an interview with BFM TV early on Wednesday. The new measures against the Kremlin – the 17th round of EU sanctions since Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine – were in the pipeline before European leaders issued their latest ultimatum to Moscow over US-led peace efforts. Diplomats representing the EU’s 27 member states approved the package at a meeting in Brussels, according to the Polish presidency of the bloc.” (05/14/25)