When the EU strengthened its economic sanctions against Russia on 12 September, EU Member States agreed to review the implementation of the Ukraine peace plan by the end of September. At the time, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy suggested that, if the situation on the ground warranted it, sanctions could be amended, suspended or even fully repealed.
While no official press release has been issued, we understand this review took place on Tuesday 30 September and included the consideration of a report prepared by the European External Action Service (EEAS) on developments in Ukraine. According to press sources that cited the comments of EU spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic after the meeting, the EU has decided to maintain its current sanctions against Russia for the near future. This is in spite of the fact that the “encouraging developments […] in the political process and in the implementation of some aspects of the Minsk Protocol” were recognised by the 28 EU ambassadors present.
This meeting follows a statement issued by the EEAS on 21 September 2014 in which it called for all elements of the Minsk Protocol and of the ceasefire agreement to be fully implemented by all sides, noting that “a lasting ceasefire remains key to the success of the current efforts to reach a sustainable political solution, based on respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity“. In her comments to the press, Maja Kocijancic reiterated that other parts of the peace deal would now need to be “properly implemented” and echoed President Van Rompuy’s statement, “if the situation on the ground so warrants, the Commission and the EEAS (EU diplomatic service) would be invited to put forward to the Council proposals to amend, suspend or repeal the set of sanctions in force, in all or in part.“
According to press sources, EU officials will continue to monitor the situation in Ukraine until the end of October when a review of the effectiveness of the EU’s sanctions is scheduled to take place.
Separately, the European Commission is expected to release guidance shortly on the scope of the Phase 3 sanctions. For example, it is anticipated that this guidance may address the definitions of “framework agreement“, “ancillary contract“, “deep water” and “arctic” (for the purposes of Articles 3 and 3(a) of EU Regulation 833/2014 (as amended)) and of “serious and significant impact on human health and safety or the environment” (for the purposes of Article 3(a)).
