European Union countries failed to agree on extending one of the anti-Russian sanctions programs, Politico reported Monday, citing EU diplomatic sources.
"Ambassadors meeting in Brussels needed to reach unanimous agreement on Monday because the regime — which governs the asset freezes of about 3,000 individuals and companies — expires Tuesday," the report said.
Slovakia demanded that the bloc remove Russian businessmen Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the sanctions list. France reportedly tried to broker a compromise by proposing to remove only Usmanov from the list.
Most other capitals were unwilling to consider removing anyone from the list while Russia is launching a record number of missiles at Ukrainian civilian targets. One diplomat said that "amid rising hybrid threats and Russian drone attacks just 1 kilometer from the Polish border, it's hard to believe France is actually asking for this."
Another part of the discussion concerns whether to extend the measures for six months, as has been standard practice since 2014, or renew them for 12 months. Slovakia reportedly does not want to support the longer term.
A French diplomat said, "We have a specific national security issue and wish to respond positively to international partners who have approached us regarding Mr. Usmanov."
According to sources, EU ambassadors are set to meet again later Monday to continue discussions.
