Yesterday’s EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting concluded with the adoption of several new sets of sanctions targeting Russian individuals and entities involved in cyberattacks, human rights violations and the repression of civil society.
High Representative Kaja Kallas said that the measures adopted yesterday, together with the forthcoming 21st sanctions package, comprise more than 250 listings, making them the EU’s largest round of individual sanctions against Russia since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The measures adopted by the Council included sanctions against nine individuals and four entities linked to Russian cyberattacks, 15 individuals and one entity responsible for abuses against Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilian detainees, and four individuals and five entities connected to abusive surveillance and repression inside Russia.
The ministers also discussed Ukraine’s preparations for the coming winter, including the urgent need for additional air-defence systems, generators, spare parts and funding to repair critical energy infrastructure damaged by Russian attacks. Vice-Commissioner Kallas welcomed the United States’ decision to allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot missiles under licence, while acknowledging that domestic production would take time to establish.
On the Near East, Vice-Commissioner Kallas announced that the EU and Bahrain have launched negotiations on a Strategic Partnership Agreement. The proposed agreement is intended to deepen political, economic, security and regional cooperation, but negotiations have only just begun and no final partnership agreement has yet been concluded.
On Iran, the High Representative said that the Strait of Hormuz had been open to shipping without tolls before the war and must once again be opened to unhindered navigation. She condemned attacks on commercial shipping and said that the EU and its Gulf partners had discussed protecting freedom of navigation in both the Gulf and the Red Sea.
The Foreign Affairs Council also discussed possible trade measures against products originating from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. According to the Council’s official account, the European Commission presented options including a full or partial import ban, stricter export-licensing requirements and the possible imposition of tariffs. The High Representative stressed that the proposed measures would target illegal settlements rather than Israel itself and said that action against settlement trade received the greatest support among member states. The matter is still being discussed
Euractiv has reported an institutional dispute between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s Commission and the European External Action Service led by Vice-Commissioenr Kallas over the legal basis, scope and handling of the proposed measures. The High Representative has publicly pressed for a tougher response to settlement expansion, while divisions among member states and within the EU institutions have repeatedly delayed action.
On Gaza, the High Representative said that the peace process had stalled and reiterated that all 27 EU member states regard Israeli settlements in the West Bank as illegal under international law. The Council expressed grave concern over the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, called for full and unhindered humanitarian access and reaffirmed its support for a two-state solution.
During yesterday’s Palestine Donor Group meeting, the European Commission and 15 international partners also launched the Team Gaza Initiative, mobilising an initial €883.6 million for ongoing and planned early-recovery projects in Gaza. The EU remains the largest donor to the Palestinian people and the strongest international supporter of the two-State solution.
Malta’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Chris Fearne, also attended the Foreign Affairs Council meeting.
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