EU Deadlock Over Lifting Russian Oligarch Sanctions Persists

EU member states failed to finalize a deal Monday that would have removed Russian oligarchs Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the EU sanctions blacklist. The failed compromise was intended to extend broader sanctions on nearly 3,000 other individuals and entities related to the Ukraine war, exposing divisions among member states over Russia policy.

Byte's take

Disunity becomes Moscow's best defense. Hungary's resistance to keeping two oligarchs sanctioned has stalled renewal of restrictions on nearly 3,000 Russian individuals and entities, fracturing EU consensus on economic pressure over Ukraine just as sanctions expire.