
Germany is ready to consider sanctions against Russia's largest bank, Sberbank, Bloomberg reports, citing sources familiar with the matter. According to the agency, this measure may be included in the new, sixth, package of European sanctions against RUSSIA.
Germany was one of the countries that was reluctant to impose sanctions restrictions on Russia, the agency points out, and opposed severe restrictions on Sberbank, including against its disconnection from SWIFT. The Baltic countries, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zalensky, are calling for sanctions against more Russian banks, Bloomberg notes.
According to Bloomberg diplomatic sources and documents seen by the agency, Berlin was concerned that sanctions against Sberbank would prevent energy-related financial transactions. However, in recent weeks, Germany has found alternative energy suppliers and is now preparing to support a phased ban on Russian oil , the agency's interlocutors said.
10 countries have decided to close the loophole in the EU sanctions to pay for gas from Russia Economics
The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said earlier that the EU could introduce new sanctions against Russian banks. “Especially [we are studying] Sberbank, which accounts for 37% of this sector,” she said. Also, according to her, the European Commission is now "in the process of developing smart mechanisms" through which the next package of sanctions will affect Russian oil.
At the same time, Von der Leyen, who served as Minister of Defense of Germany before becoming head of the European Commission, rejected suggestions that the German government was slowing down the imposition of sanctions against Russia, saying that Berlin approved all five previously proposed sanctions packages within 48 hours. ".
On April 28, Mario Mehren, the head of the German Wintershall, which was Gazprom's main partner in Nord Stream 2, said that Berlin sees Russia's actions in Ukraine as a "turning point", which means "the end of an era of intensive and long economic cooperation with Russia". The company also wrote down €1.5 billion of related assets due to loss of revenue from the Nord Stream 2 project and transactions related to Russia.
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Blocking sanctions against Sberbank were previously imposed by the United States , and the bank's work in the UK was also limited. Washington froze the bank's assets and banned Americans from doing business with Sberbank, London first closed Sberbank's correspondent accounts in British banks and banned it from conducting clearing operations in pounds sterling, and then also froze the assets of a financial organization. Since April 7, the bank has stopped all transfers abroad in foreign currency.
In early March, the European Union disconnected Russian banks VTB, Rossiya, Otkritie, Novikombank, Promsvyazbank, Sovcombank and VEB.RF from SWIFT, a system for transmitting financial messages between banks. Sberbank and Gazprombank have so far avoided shutdowns.
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