The member states of the European Union finalized on Friday an agreement to set a ceiling of 60 dollars, 57 euros at the exchange rate, on the price of Russian oil, in a negotiation that has culminated just three days before the embargo on the purchase of Russian crude oil formally approved in October comes into force.
The measure follows the agreement reached within the G7 for a ceiling between 65 and 70 dollars and is aimed at limiting the price of oil transported by sea and will not affect crude that reaches Europe via pipeline, after the exception achieved by Hungary and other landlocked European partners who claim their great dependence on Russian oil.
Member states are negotiating against the clock to have a mechanism in place by December 5, the date on which the EU embargo on the purchase of Russian oil comes into force, trying to overcome the reluctance of Poland and the Baltics. Warsaw has placed itself at the center of the discussion by demanding a very low maximum price of $30, a far cry from the European Commission’s initial proposal of $65.
On the other hand, the reluctance of Mediterranean countries such as Greece, Cyprus and Malta to a very low maximum price, citing their dependence on the maritime transport sector, seems to have been resolved with the creation of a compensation mechanism to generate a certain margin for the Russian crude oil trade.
POLAND’S «HARD STANCE» Poland understands that a low cap is the only way to damage Russian crude exports, various diplomatic sources have pointed out, agreeing on Warsaw’s «very hard» position on the issue.
In addition, this group of countries link their approval to the approval of the ninth round of sanctions against Russia in retaliation for the war in Ukraine, a round that has also been under negotiation for weeks among member states without a clear horizon for its approval. All sources consulted are confident of reaching an agreement before the deadline, noting that the new round of sanctions against Moscow is on track, regardless of whether it sees the light of day in parallel to the oil measure.
In case the agreement is concluded this Friday, the EU-27 will launch the simplified written procedure or silence procedure in which the absence of a response from a Council member by the deadline implies acceptance of the adoption of the measure.
