Lithuania insists on sanctions against Russian LNG and shadow fleet

Lithuania proposes to target further EU sanctions against Russian liquefied natural gas and “shadow fleet” vessels.

This was stated by Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys, Gospodarka Morska reports.

According to him, after the Russian attack on Sumy, the European Union should adopt the 17th package of sanctions against Russia. According to Budrys, the package should cover liquefied natural gas and the Russian state nuclear company Rosatom.

Budrys, who flew to Luxembourg for a meeting of EU foreign ministers, condemned Russia’s missile strike on Sumy on Sunday. The attack killed 34 people and injured about 120.

“Russia and Putin are sending their ballistic missiles to Ukraine on Palm Sunday, a holy day for everyone, and this is truly barbaric and radical, because these missiles were armed with cluster munitions, which are designed to kill infantry, destroy infantry equipment and various equipment,” he said.

Budrys added that this is “a war crime by definition.” “This is another humiliation for those who are making diplomatic efforts to stop this, to stop this war and at least achieve a ceasefire, to start negotiations,” the minister stressed.

Therefore, it is time for the EU to adopt the 17th package of sanctions against Russia and cover all sectors that are not included in the 16th package, Budrys said.

“This is LNG. This is Rosatom. This is an additional package against the “shadow fleet” and, of course, additional individual sanctions. This is how we should act and get a greater opportunity to put pressure on Putin to stop his war,” the head of Lithuanian diplomacy noted. Earlier, USM reported that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy instructed to prepare new sanctions against the Russian “shadow fleet”.