EU Leaders Will Not Agree on 9th Package of Sanctions Against Russia on Thursday, Borrell Says

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The EU leaders will not agree on the ninth package of sanctions against Russia on Thursday as further negotiations are needed at the level of ambassadors, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said.

"I do not think the agreement will come from this meeting [on Thursday], we will have to continue working at the level of the COREPER [the EU Permanent Representatives Committee]," Borrell said ahead of the EU summit in Brussels.

The EU, Britain, and the United States imposed economic restrictions against Moscow after Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24. In October, the EU introduced the eighth package of sanctions, which included a legislative basis for setting a price cap for maritime shipments of Russian oil to third countries.

In December, the EU also reached an agreement on setting a price cap on Russian oil at $60 per barrel, which went into effect on Monday. The cap will be reviewed every two months to remain at 5% below the International Energy Agency benchmark. The G7 nations and Australia also agreed the same day to set a $60 price ceiling on oil from Russia. Moscow, however, lambasted the decision, stressing that it would only sell oil to the countries on a market basis.