MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th April, 2022) The European Parliament called on Thursday for a total ban on oil, coal, gas and nuclear fuel coming from Russia and the exclusion of Moscow from international organizations.
"In a resolution adopted with 513 votes to 22 and 19 abstentions on Thursday, MEPs call for additional punitive measures, including 'an immediate full embargo on Russian imports of oil, coal, nuclear fuel and gas,'" the parliament said in a statement, while also calling for an EU energy security plan and a strategy to roll back sanctions under certain conditions.
The European lawmakers also called on EU leaders to exclude Russia from G20, Interpol, the World Trade Organization and other such groups, while also urging effective implementation of current anti-Russian sanctions by the EU and its allies.
"To make the sanctions more effective, the Parliament calls for Russian banks to be excluded from the SWIFT system, for all vessels connected to Russia to be banned from entering EU territorial waters and docking at EU ports, and for road freight transport from and to Russia and Belarus to be prohibited," the statement read, while also demanding the seizure of assets belonging to Russian officials or "oligarchs."
On February 24, Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk appealed for help in defending themselves against Ukrainian provocations. In response, the EU rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Moscow, which includes airspace closures and restrictive measures targeting numerous Russian officials and entities, media and financial institutions.
