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Economy

Trump tightens oil sanctions on Venezuela with tanker blockade

By deploying naval forces to intercept sanctioned Venezuelan oil shipments, the Trump administration is pushing the enforcement of oil sanctions into uncharted legal territory, prompting concerns in Congress and among international law experts about escalation risks.

USA

Trump orders blockade of sanctioned oil tankers to and from Venezuela

Trump's escalation comes after U.S. forces last week seized an oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast, an unusual move that followed a buildup of military forces in the region.

World News

US lifts sanctions on Belarusian potash, Lukashenko releases 123 more political prisoners

The US presidential envoy announced the lifting of sanctions on Belarusian potash fertilisers. In return, Aliaksandr Lukashenka released a large group of political prisoners, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski and one of the opposition leaders Maria Kolesnikova

Europe News

Two Russian shadow fleet tankers on fire off Turkiye's coast

Two sanctioned oil tankers, the Kairos and the Virat, have caught fire in the Black Sea a few dozen nautical miles off the Turkish coast. Their crews are safe as the causes of the explosions are being investigated.

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Europe News

Ukraine peace talks: What's at stake for the Europeans?

Initially sidelined, Europeans want to muscle their way back to the peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia by leveraging the key issues that can only be settled with their consent. But what are they? Analysis:

Economy

Italian firms in Russia lead to €1bn boost for Kremlin war coffers

Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Italian companies paid over €1 billion in taxes to Russia, half of which went to military spending to finance the ongoing destruction of Ukraine.

Business

Swiss firm Gunvor drops plan to buy Lukoil assets after US resistance

“As long as Putin continues the senseless killings, the Kremlin’s puppet, Gunvor, will never get a licence to operate and profit,” said the US Treasury in an X post on Thursday.

Syria

UN lifts sanctions against Syria's al-Sharaa before White House visit

The sanctions relief fulfils the Trump administration's pledges following the US leader's May meeting with al-Sharaa in Riyadh, during which he promised to lift or waive decades-old sanctions against Syria.

France

Risky to stay, costly to go: French companies in Russia face dilemma

Many French corporate giants have withdrawn from the Russian market, either because of the difficulties of doing business in a heavily sanctioned country or the potential PR disaster of staying.

Ukraine

Zelenskyy: Ukraine strikes cut Russia's oil refining capacity by 20%

Oil exports play a key role in funding Russia's invasion of Ukraine and new sanctions from the EU and US aim to cut into Moscow's oil and gas export earnings.

Russia

Putin dismisses US sanctions, Trump replies ‘We will see'

Russia’s president downplayed the latest US sanctions as an “unfriendly act” which he claims would not have much impact on Russia’s economy or its stance on Moscow’s war in Ukraine. His comments were largely dismissed by Donald Trump, who said, “I am glad he feels this way”.

Europe News

EU leaders kick can down the road on reparation loan for Ukraine

EU leaders have vowed to return to the thorny issue of leveraging immobilised Russian assets as an extraordinary loan to Ukraine in December's summit.

Europe News

Threat of EU sanctions against Israel still on the table, Kallas says

The 27 European ministers of foreign affairs, who were meeting in Luxembourg, considered the situation in Gaza too "fragile" to withdraw possible sanctions against Israel.

USA

Chinese airlines protest US plan to ban flights over Russian airspace

The Kremlin shuts its airspace to US airlines in 2022 in response to Western sanctions over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Europe News

EU envoy calls on the US to rejoin the West on Russian sanctions

David O'Sullivan, the EU's sanctions envoy, told Euronews he hopes the US will return to a policy of applying new sanctions against Russia.

Serbia

US sanctions Serbia's main oil supplier over Russian-majority control

The measures, which Washington has postponed six times, could lead to fuel shortages and price increases in Serbia.

Europe News

MEPs face backlash over controversial meeting with Russian lawmakers

A controversial meeting between European lawmakers and Russian State Duma MPs sparked outrage among other MEPs, who said it violated European Parliament rules and demanded disciplinary action.

France

Captain of oil tanker linked to Russia's shadow fleet to go on trial in France

The ship, which was boarded by the French navy over the weekend, remains off the country's Atlantic coast.

Europe News

MEPs urge support for Iranian civil society three years after Mahsa Amini's death

Repression is intensifying in Iran, warn human rights activists and MEPs.

EU Decoded

Can the EU overcome divergence over sanctions against Israel?

The President of the European Commission proposed punitive measures against Israel for the first time, due to the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza. However, Ursula von der Leyen acknowledged that approving sanctions will be difficult, given the divisions among  EU member states.