EU proposes ban on Russian oil imports by end of 2022 to tighten grip on Putin

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The EU has unveiled proposals for new sanctions on Russia including a ban on oil imports by the end of this year.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: ‘It will not be easy but we simply have to do it.’

She said Putin wanted to wipe Ukraine off the map but warned the dictator ‘he will not succeed’.

Many EU member states are dependent on Russian oil.

The new sanction is the toughest yet and comes more than two months after Putin launched his bloody invasion.

Von der Leyen said Russian military officers who committed war crimes in Bucha and Mariupol will also be targeted, telling them: ‘We know who you are, you will not get away with this.’

In addition, Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, is to be disconnected from the SWIFT bank transfer system.

Meanwhile, three big state-owned Russian broadcasters are to be cut off from the EU on cable, satellite or the internet for ‘amplifying Putin’s lies’.

The EU’s 27 member states will vote on the plans in the coming days.

But questions remain over whether any countries will be exempt from the embargo.

Hungary and Slovakia, which are heavily dependent on Russian oil, had already threatened to veto any outright ban.

Von der Leyen told the bloc’s parliament in Strasbourg that member states should cease to buy oil supplies within six months and associated products from Russia by the end of 2022.

‘Thus we maximise pressure on Russia while at the same time we minimise the collateral damage on us and our partners around the globe. We have to ensure that our economy remains strong,’ she said.

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