EU, Japan Reject Washington’s Proposal to Ban Exports to Russia

 

by Kyle Anzalone | Apr 24, 2023

An American plan to strengthen its economic war against Russia by banning all exports has not been well received by its allies. According to the Financial Times, the European Union and Japan have pushed back against ending trade with Moscow. 

Last week, Bloomberg News reported Washington would seek to get members of the Group of 7 (G7) to end exports to Russia. After Russia invaded Ukraine, the US attempted to isolate Moscow and cripple its economy. However, Russia has weathered the Western sanctions. Additionally, G7 states have continued to trade with Russia. According to Trade Data Monitor, G7 countries – the US, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the European Union – exported $66 billion to Russia over the past 14 months.

Washington’s new proposal would shift how sanctions against Moscow are enforced. Currently, the US and its allies blacklist particular Russian products, companies and individuals, barring Americans from business transactions with the targeted entities. If adopted, the export ban will prohibit all trade with Moscow unless there is an explicit exemption. 

On Monday, FT reported Japan and the EU are refusing to sign on to the plan. Washington was hoping to implement the export ban at a G7 summit in Hiroshima on May 19. One unnamed official told FT, “From our perspective, it is simply not do-able.”

Members of the G7 are open to signing a statement that calls for cracking down on those who evade sanctions on Moscow. Earlier this month, two US Treasury officials traveled to Europe and threatened penalties on countries not fully enforcing the economic war against Russia. 

The Kremlin says it will respond to the export ban by revoking the grain export agreement. The deal, brokered by the UN and Turkey in July 2022, has allowed 23 million tonnes of food products to leave Ukraine’s heavily mined Black Sea ports. 

 

About Kyle Anzalone

Kyle Anzalone is news editor of the Libertarian Institute, opinion editor of Antiwar.com and co-host of Conflicts of Interest with Will Porter and Connor Freeman.

https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/eu-japan-reject-washingtons-proposal-to-ban-exports-to-russia/