On 26 May in Brussels, The White Paper: The Future of European Leadership in Economic Deterrence of Aggression was presented, calling on the European Union to take a leading role in strengthening the sanctions coalition and intensifying economic pressure on the Russian Federation. The document, approved by the Expert Group on the Development and Implementation of Sanctions Policy under the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, was written by the National Sanctions Coalition and coordinated by the Economic Security Council of Ukraine (ESCU).
It analyses both the achievements and the remaining vulnerabilities of EU sanctions policy and offers practical proposals to reinforce European economic security—not only in response to Russian aggression but also to counter future threats.
Among the recommendations are establishing a unified EU sanctions authority; introducing an EU equivalent to the U.S. Entity List; enforcing stricter export controls on high-risk goods; applying extraterritorial (secondary) sanctions to enablers of sanctions evasion; and maintaining restrictions on Russia’s defense sector and critical infrastructure even after hostilities cease.
“The sanctions tools proposed in the White Paper are aimed at the swift cessation of Russia’s war in Ukraine—by reducing the Russian Federation’s revenues and limiting its military-industrial potential. At the same time, they have long-term goals: restoration of territorial integrity, fair compensation for damages, and strengthening the EU’s collective security. After all, Russia is conducting not only military but also hybrid aggression—interfering in political processes and using the economy of open markets as a weapon,” said Denys Hutyk, Executive Director of the ESCU and one of the co-authors of the document.
Tomas Sindelar, Deputy Head of the Sanctions Division at the European External Action Service (EEAS), highlighted that the White Paper's priorities closely align with the EU’s evolving sanctions strategy, and used the shadow fleet as an example to illustrate how EU measures are adapting over time.
“We started looking at the vessels, but the latest analysis is that there’s actually what we call a whole ecosystem of operators around the shadow fleet. That’s insurance companies, fleet operators, service providers, et cetera. And those, of course, if are also hit by sanctions significantly, then, you know, you can cause disruptions into the shadow fleet, whilst, of course, still continuing to go after the vessels.
So the 17th package was precisely the first one where we took this holistic approach. We more than doubled the amount of vessels, but we for the first time actually went also around this ecosystem—not only in Russia, but more importantly, also third countries. So you will see operators in numerous third countries which are supporting, which are kind of the backbone of the shadow fleet, which are also hit precisely because we think this has an impact on the military-industrial sector.”
Jim Mullinax, State Department Fellow at the Wilson Center and Senior Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Department of State, noted that the White Paper provided a high-quality analysis and constructive proposals that could increase pressure on Russia. He also emphasised the importance of stronger EU leadership:
“The United States is currently, let’s say, in a transitional phase regarding our sanctions policy against Russia. I can confirm that a wide variety of plans have been considered both to tighten and to reduce sanctions as the case may be. We all watch President Trump’s comments religiously to see which direction the wind is blowing. But of course, we’re not in a place right now to move quickly without direction from the White House in terms of implementing sanctions.
And so at this crucial juncture, it’s really important for others to step up. I think the EU has shown over the past several years that it has the capacity to do so when it has the will to do so. Now is the time for the EU to definitely exert its will.”
The full text of The White Paper: The Future of European Leadership in Economic Deterrence of Aggression is available via the link.
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