Brussels, 21 June 2023 (dpa/MIA) - European Union countries have agreed after lengthy discussion to a new package of sanctions on Russia over its war in Ukraine, the Swedish EU presidency says on Twitter.

The EU's 11th round of punitive measures includes sanctions on more individuals and organizations over their support for Russia's war, but also aims at countering the circumvention of sanctions already imposed, it said on Wednesday.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she welcomed the new sanctions package.

"It will deal a further blow to Putin’s war machine with tightened export restrictions, targeting entities supporting the Kremlin," she said on Twitter.

"Our anti-circumvention tool will prevent Russia from getting its hands on sanctioned goods," she added.

The deal was reached by EU ambassadors in Brussels and has to be confirmed by capitals, which is considered a formality.

The plans include the possibility to restrict selected exports to countries through which sanctioned products are shipped to reach their final destination in Russia, evading direct export restrictions.

Countries through which sanctions against Russia are circumvented include Kazakhstan, Armenia, the United Arab Emirates and China. Turkey reacts comparatively decisively to indications of sanctions evasion, EU experts said recently.

The latest round of EU sanctions was initially proposed by the commission in early May and was followed by weeks-long negotiations among member countries.

The idea to target countries helping to circumvent sanctions initially led to concerns by some EU countries over potential retaliatory measures, including from China, which could negatively impact trade relations. A very cautious approach has therefore been agreed.

Von der Leyen previously said that the EU export bans on Russia affect goods with a pre-war trade volume of around €50 billion ($54.6 billion) per year. This corresponds to a share of 55% of EU exports to Russia, she said.

Import bans on goods from Russia to the EU apply to 60% of pre-war imports, amounting to a value of about €90 billion. The EU, for example, has banned imports of coal and certain oil products since Russia launched its full-on invasion in February 2022.

Photo: MIA Archive