The Kremlin has once again erupted in threats and vitriol. Following the adoption of the EU’s 18th sanctions package against Moscow’s aggression, Dmitry Medvedev, the Russian former president, lashed out, calling European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen a “disgusting old hag” and branding Europeans as “imbeciles.”

“European imbeciles have approved the 18th package of sanctions against our country. There’s no point in writing that it will change Russia’s stance any more than the previous seventeen did,” Medvedev said on social media.

EU agrees on new Russia sanctions package targeting energy and finance

He believes the Russian economy would endure and stated that the destruction of Ukraine would continue.

“Strikes on targets in the so-called Ukraine, including Kyiv, will be carried out with increasing force,” he stressed.

Medvedev then escalated his tirade, launching insults at EU nations including Poland, Germany, France, the Baltic states, and the UK. He urged maximum detachment from the EU, which he claimed is now home to “Brits mired in their own shit.”

He went further, stating that Russians should learn to hate Europeans, just as their ancestors once did.

“Hatred is the most powerful weapon, allowing us to move most effectively toward its opposite—love. Naturally, toward those who deserve it,” he claimed.

Von der Leyen received particular scorn, with Medvedev attempting to mock her medical background.

“I’m not sure she even knows where the heart is. Though it seems she’s always thought with the part of her body she used during her failed medical career,” he said. 

Medvedev’s outburst once again illustrates the tone of official Russian rhetoric amid intensified missile strikes on Ukrainian civilians, Russia’s answer to US President Donald Trump’s recent peace efforts.

Ukraine has synchronized its sanctions against Russia with the last three packages of economic penalties imposed by the European Union, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on July 8.

"Three more packages of EU sanctions are fully effective in Ukraine," Zelensky said in his evening address.

Earlier on July 8, the president announced a new round of sanctions, including restrictions on five Chinese-registered companies accused of supplying components found in Russian Shahed-type drones used to attack Ukraine.

Vladyslav Vlasiuk, Zelensky's sanctions commissioner, told reporters on July 8 that the latest decrees bring Ukrainian penalties in line with the EU's 15th, 16th, and 17th packages of sanctions against Russia.

The 15th package targets individuals from Russia, Belarus, and China, among other countries, according to Vlasiuk. It includes the Russian pilot Alexander Azarenkov, who was involved in the deadly attack on the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv. Zelensky signed the sanctions decree on the one-year anniversary of the strike.

The 16th package includes individuals from Russia, China, Turkey, and other nations. It also targets the Voin Center, Russia's military-patriotic education organization operating in occupied Ukrainian territories, and Pivdennyi Flot LLC, which transports Russian oil via its "shadow fleet," Vlasiuk said.

The 17th package designates firms from Russia, China, Turkey, and other countries, including the gold-mining company Petropavlovsk and the Chinese company Skywalker Technology Co. Ltd, produce drone parts for Russia.

The EU is expected to approve its 18th package of sanctions against Russia later this week, after facing opposition from pro-Kremlin bloc members Slovakia and Hungary.

Ukraine has taken measures to coordinate sanctions with international partners in order to amplify pressure on Moscow. Zelensky on June 27 signed a decree to synchronize Ukraine's sanctions against Russia with those imposed by the EU and Group of Seven (G7).

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The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk

Russian crude continues flowing into the EU through Hungary, despite sanctions, via a covert trade network. An investigation by the Russian investigative outlet Important Stories (IStories) into Kremlin oil deals with Orbán allies uncovers how a shadowy firm helped channel over $10 billion in oil from Putin-linked circles to Hungary’s ruling elite.

Russian oil deals with Orbán allies exposed

IStories traced the vast post-2014 oil trade into the EU to Normeston Trading, a mysterious company registered in Belize and operated through Cyprus. The firm sold over 20 million tons of Russian oil to Eastern Europe between 2011 and 2023 — with about 2 million tons in 2023 alone, including over 1 million tons delivered to Hungary.

At the core of the operation is a network of business and political links stretching from the Kremlin to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s closest allies. The firm’s Russian side was connected to former top executives of sanctioned billionaire Gennady Timchenko, while its Hungarian ownership includes friends and business partners of Orbán.

A race car driver becomes a $10 billion oil trader

In 2014, the Slovak antimonopoly authority publicly named Normeston’s owners: Russian national Lev Tolkachev and Hungarian consultant Imre Fazakas. Tolkachev, a former Lukoil employee and amateur race car driver, officially held the stake at the time. He also managed a mid-sized auto business in Tver and founded the Rumos Racing team in Russia.

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Tolkachev’s profile stood in sharp contrast to the scale of Normeston’s operations. A former Russian official told IStories:

“In Russia under no circumstances could a race car driver, even if he’s a former oil company employee, be the real owner of an oil trading business with contracts worth billions of dollars.”

Tolkachev’s companies were also connected through shared control in 2017–2018 to those owned by Sergey Gzhelyak, a top executive for Timchenko. Another Timchenko associate, Aleksandr Zhuravlev, still sits on boards with Tolkachev in Normeston-linked firms.

Subbotin re-emerges in the oil trade from Monaco

After Tolkachev, another figure took control: Valery Subbotin, former Lukoil vice president and head of Litasco, its trading arm. Subbotin fled Russia in 2016, settling in Europe and acquiring Cypriot citizenship. In 2023, his Valna Holding Cyprus obtained a 49.9% stake in Normeston.

Subbotin had fallen out with Igor Sechin’s Rosneft during its 2016 takeover of Bashneft. According to Forbes Russia, Subbotin’s contracts were canceled, and he left under pressure. However, IStories found that even in exile, Subbotin maintained ties with Putin’s business circle and associates of former pro-Kremlin fugitive Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.

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In 2023, Normeston won a Czech tender worth over $45 million — a deal Czech media linked to Subbotin. His family owns a heavily fortified villa on the French Riviera, where security measures led one witness to mistake it for Sechin’s residence.

Normeston’s deliveries grew with each wave of sanctions

Ironically, EU sanctions boosted Normeston’s activity. In 2014, after Crimea’s invasion and annexation by Russia, the company’s oil exports via Druzhba increased fivefold. After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, shipments jumped tenfold. The trader avoided sanctions, largely because it did not buy oil directly from blacklisted firms like Lukoil.

In 2024, Ukraine sanctioned Lukoil, halting its pipeline shipments. But Hungary’s MOL stepped in to purchase the same Russian oil at the Belarus–Ukraine border and continued the deliveries under its own name. According to IStories, Lukoil previously accounted for over 40% of Druzhba’s flow.

Throughout, Normeston remained active. Its Moscow office operates from a building housing firms linked to OTP Bank, headed by Orbán ally Sándor Csányi, and associated with György Nagy — another key Hungarian figure tied to the oil trade.

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Orbán’s allies profit from gas trade too

In 2009, Hungarian oil and gas company MOL sold 50% of its gas trader MET to Normeston. Just two years later, that stake was transferred to Orbán’s associates — István Garancsi and György Nagy. MET quickly grew into a giant, operating in 17 countries with nearly €18 billion in annual turnover.

Anti-corruption researchers in Hungary described the deal as one of the most “critical episodes in the country’s economic history.” According to reports cited by IStories, the MET owners earned over $200 million in a single year by purchasing cheap spot gas and selling it domestically — all with Kremlin knowledge and apparent approval.

A source from within the Hungarian government told Direkt36, iStory’s partner in the investigation, that Russian authorities could have blocked MET’s deals but didn’t.

Old Soviet ties in modern energy networks

Hungarian co-owner Imre Fazakas, who held a 16.7% stake in Normeston, studied in Lviv and worked in Moscow in the 1980s as deputy director of Videoton’s local office. He became familiar with Soviet oil operations while coordinating computer systems for drilling rigs and transportation systems.

Fazakas later consulted for MOL and served on the board of MET — alongside Tolkachev. A former Hungarian official told Direkt36 that Videoton had strong ties to the Soviet military sector and state security.

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Hungary and Slovakia expand Russian fuel use while EU cuts imports

Another Hungarian shareholder, the Madera Investment Fund, which owns 33.4% of Normeston, is linked to György Nagy, a powerful businessman and partner of Garancsi and Csányi. Nagy graduated from Russia’s MGIMO international relations university and secured major government contracts during Orbán’s premiership — including a $5 million IT deal with the Hungarian post office.

His companies also serve OTP Bank—still doing business in Russia—and telecom clients, including MOL. 

Hungary blocks sanctions — Russian oil keeps flowing

In June 2025, Hungary and Slovakia again blocked a proposed package that would have banned Russian oil and gas imports altogether.

In a June 2025 interview, Orbán went further, saying: if Vladimir Putin visits Hungary, he would be received “with all due honors.”

In 2024, Orbán echoed Russia’s narratives, claiming Europe acts “at the behest of the US” and allegedly sacrifices its own interests to support Ukraine. He insisted that Hungary would not abandon Russian oil.

After failing to approve 18th package of sanctions against Russia due to opposition from Hungary and Slovakia, EU countries are expected to finalize an agreement this week, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna said on July 7.

Since EU sanctions require unanimous approval, a single veto could prevent implementation. In late June, EU ambassadors did not approve the sanctions package because of objections from Budapest and Bratislava.

"According to my information, European countries will still reach an agreement this week on the 18th package of sanctions, together with Slovakia and Hungary," she told Ukrainian broadcaster ICTV.

The delay followed earlier signs of resistance from both governments, despite the package being introduced shortly after the previous round of sanctions took effect on May 20.

"It is noteworthy that during the previous period, when the decision on the 17th package was being made, Hungary did not vote for this decision until the last day," Stefanishyna said.

"There was even almost a day when these sanctions were not put into effect."

Unlike Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has consistently opposed sanctions and military aid for Ukraine, Slovakia has not previously attempted to block new EU measures.

Bratislava requested a delay in adopting the latest package until the bloc clarifies the financial implications of RePowerEU — an initiative to end reliance on Russian fossil fuels by 2030.

"Without radical political leadership in the European Union, it will be very difficult," Stefanishyna said, warning of future veto threats by individual member states.

The 18th package includes new restrictions targeting Russia's energy and banking sectors, as well as transactions linked to the Nord Stream pipeline project.

These measures are part of a broader European effort to tighten pressure on Moscow as it continues to reject calls for an unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine.

While the EU pushes forward with additional restrictions, the United States has not imposed new sanctions on Russia since President Donald Trump took office in January.

‘Neither side wasted time’ — Ukraine’s economy minister on minerals deal negotiations with Trump’s ‘business-oriented’ administration

Ukraine’s Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko says her task is simple — to get the investment fund behind the closely watched minerals deal with the U.S. off the ground, and prove its detractors wrong. “There are so many criticisms from different parties that this fund is just a piece of paper we can put on the shelves — that it won’t be operational,” Svyrydenko, who is also Ukraine’s first deputy prime minister, tells the Kyiv Independent at Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers on July 4, the morning

The Kyiv IndependentLiliane Bivings

During a tense high-level meeting in Brussels, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the EU’s foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas that Beijing cannot allow Russia to lose in its war against Ukraine. According to several sources cited by the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on 4 July, China fears that such an outcome would allow the United States to fully pivot its attention to Beijing.

SCMP reports that during a four-hour closed-door discussion with EU officials on 2 July, Wang Yi said a Russian defeat in Ukraine was strategically unacceptable for China. This comment to Kallas — who assumed her EU role in late 2024 — echoed what many in Brussels suspected to be Beijing’s true position but contradicted China’s public statements claiming it is “not a party” to the war.

Wang rejected accusations that China is supporting Russia militarily or financially, asserting that if it had been doing so, the war would have ended already. Some EU officials saw Wang’s tone as a harsh dose of realpolitik, designed to pressure the EU to reconsider its support for Ukraine.

Diplomatic friction intensifies

EU diplomats were surprised by Wang’s bluntness, especially just weeks before the scheduled summit in China on 24 and 25 July. SCMP sources said Wang hinted the summit could be shortened, a possible warning over the bloc’s ongoing stance.

On the same day, Wang also met with European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. According to EU sources, all three European leaders shared a unified stance across all major points.

A major point of contention remains the EU’s 18th sanctions package against Moscow, which includes plans to blacklist two small Chinese banks over violations of existing Russia sanctions. Wang reportedly vowed multiple times to retaliate if these sanctions are approved by the bloc’s 27 member states.

China’s version softens the narrative

Beijing’s official account of the meeting with Kallas significantly downplayed tensions. According to the Chinese foreign ministry, “There is no fundamental conflict of interests between China and the EU, and they have broad common interests.” It emphasized mutual respect, learning, and cooperation, without addressing the contentious topics raised during the meeting.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged Germany to use its influence to persuade Hungary to support the European Union’s proposed 18th package of sanctions against Russia. Earlier, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced that both Hungary and Slovakia have decided not to support the EU’s plan for the 18th round of sanctions against Russia. 

Kyiv urges Berlin to take leadership role

Speaking ahead of a meeting with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on 30 June, Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for support of the latest sanctions proposal and stressed that European leaders are close to approving it. However, he acknowledged ongoing resistance from Hungary.

“We are grateful for the support of the 18th sanctions package against Russian aggression. I know that European leaders are very close to [approving] this package. I know there are still some misunderstandings with official Budapest,” Zelenskyy said, as reported by Ukrinform.

Zelenskyy emphasized that Germany, “as a European leader,” should take the initiative to engage Hungary diplomatically to help secure a united EU front.

Sanctions as a tool to pressure Russia

Zelenskyy underlined the strategic role of sanctions in holding Russia accountable. He stated that only strong economic measures can inflict real damage on the Russian economy and make Moscow feel the cost of its invasion of Ukraine.

“I believe it’s in the interest of all Europe that these packages against Russia’s aggression work — so that Russia feels the high cost of this war, and precisely through sanctions, its economy will suffer,” he stated.

Ukraine remains restrained toward Hungary

Despite Hungary’s opposition, Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine continues to behave “very diplomatically, constructively” and constructively. He made clear that Kyiv has chosen not to retaliate against Budapest’s actions, prioritizing unity over conflict within the European bloc.

He added, “We would like to stay in a union of partners and friends. Ukraine always has something to respond with, but still, we are partners, and we have one enemy, and that is Russia.”

Moscow has become even more economically dependent on Beijing. Russia’s aluminum exports to China surged 56% in the first five months of 2025, nearly reaching 1 million metric tons, Bloomberg reports.

Meanwhile, Russian copper exports to China rose by 66%, and nickel shipments more than doubled, Trade Data Monitor reports, citing Chinese customs data.

Top Russian producers like Norilsk Nickel and Rusal are not directly sanctioned by the US but face restrictions: their metals are no longer accepted on the London or Chicago Metal Exchanges, pushing them to shift sales to Asian markets.

Sources say Rusal is offloading accumulated stockpiles from Russia throughout 2025, with total shipments to China expected to hit 1.5 million tons by year’s end.

Meanwhile, Norilsk Nickel is partnering with China’s Shandong Gold to expand cathode copper exports. Other Russian firms, including Russian Copper Co. and UMCC, both already under sanctions, continue to trade with Chinese buyers.

Previously, David O’Sullivan, the EU’s special envoy for sanctions enforcement related to Russia’s war against Ukraine, said that 80% of Russian weapons components come from China, UkrInform reports. 

He explained that Russia is circumventing sanctions through third countries and noted that Beijing’s major role in supplying dual-use goods and critical components remains a major obstacle to undermining Russia’s war machine.

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin’s spokesperson, states that Russia does not intend to stop the war, even under the threat of new restrictions from the European Union, UNIAN reports. 

He expresses confidence that even the EU’s 18th sanctions package will not compel the Kremlin to change its course.

“It’s impossible to force Russia to submit to any kind of pressure or coercion,” claims Peskov. 

According to him, Moscow will only agree to negotiations when there are “logic and arguments,” not Western pressure. At the same time, he admitted that sanctions are “a double-edged sword.”

The Kremlin continues to describe Western sanctions as “illegal” and claims that Russia has already adapted to life under international pressure. 

“Obviously, we’ve developed a certain resilience after almost four years. We’ve learned to minimize the effects of such sanctions packages,” Peskov adds.

Despite facing near-total international isolation, Moscow once again shows that it chooses confrontation over peace.

Earlier, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that current “warm conversations” between the US and Russia are a deception to avoid new sanctions.

Moscow also uses the prisoner exchange for the demonstration of willingness for peace but simultaneously denies a ceasefire, claims its territory on every piece of Earth where its soldiers step, and launches the most devastating attacks against Ukrainian civilians. 

Kyiv has multiple times said it should become a part of NATO to maintain the security in the country. However, its partners don’t accept its membership, fearing escalation. Despite trying not to increase tension, Russia may still be preparing an attack on Europe in the next 2-6 years, experts say. 

In the 90s, Ukraine gave up its nuclear arsenal for protection under the Budapest memorandum from allies, including the US. 

Editor's note: The story was updated with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico's statement voiced during the EU summit.

EU ambassadors have failed to approve the 18th package of sanctions against Russia due to opposition from Hungary and Slovakia, an unnamed EU official told the Kyiv Independent on June 27.

After the 17th package of sanctions against Russia took effect on May 20, Ukraine's allies announced the following day that another round of restrictions was already in the works. Meanwhile, officials in Hungary and Slovakia protested against the approval of new restrictions against Russia.

Unlike Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has consistently opposed sanctions against Russia, Slovakia has not previously attempted to block EU sanctions.

"No agreement was reached. Ambassadors will return to this issue after two reservations are removed," the source told Suspilne in a reference to the position of Slovakia and Hungary.

Slovakia has requested that the adoption of the 18th package of EU sanctions against Russia be postponed until a decision is made on the consequences for the member states from RePowerEU, the European Commission's initiative to end dependence on Russian fossil fuels by 2030 in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico voiced this proposal during the EU summit, the Slovak Foreign Ministry told Suspilne.

The ambassadors also agreed to extend sectoral sanctions against Russia for six months. These sanctions encompass a broad array of economic areas, including restrictions on trade, finance, technology and dual-use goods, industry, transport, and luxury goods.

In June, the European Commission presented the 18th package of sanctions, which includes new restrictions against the Russian energy and banking sectors and transactions related to the Nord Stream gas pipeline project.

Ukraine's European allies are tightening sanctions against Russia as Moscow refuses to accept a ceasefire. Despite Russia's refusal, no new U.S. sanctions have been imposed so far.

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The Kyiv Independent’s Francis Farrell explains a new modification of the standard first-person view (FPV) drone that already once transformed the way war is fought. Fiber optic cable now used to connect drone operators to FPVs ensures a perfect image and control experience all the way to the target — and cannot be spotted by enemy drone detectors.

The Kyiv IndependentFrancis Farrell

Editor's Note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

The European Union on June 26 reached an agreement to extend sanctions against Russia for another six months, an undisclosed EU official told the Kyiv Independent.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed the agreement shortly afterwards in a joint press conference alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa at the EU summit in Brussels.

The EU made the decision on June 26 to extend its current sanctions against Russia for six more months, Tusk said.

"We still have a decision about the 18th sanctions package ahead of us," he added.

The EU votes to renew its sectoral sanctions against Russia every six months in January and July. Sanctions encompass a broad array of economic areas, including restrictions on trade, finance, technology and dual-use goods, industry, transport, and luxury goods.

The latest agreement comes amid fears that Hungary, one of the bloc's most Kremlin-friendly member states, would attempt to block the extension. Hungary has repeatedly threatened to use its veto power to obstruct the sanctions process.

The European bloc first adopted sanctions related to Russian aggression on July 31, 2014, after Moscow occupied Crimea and invaded Ukraine's eastern Donbas region. The EU has significantly scaled up its sanctions measures in the wake of the full-scale invasion, adopting 17 major sanctions packages since February 2022.

The EU on June 10 unveiled its 18th package of sanctions against Russia, expanding current measures to include new restrictions on energy, banking, oil, and other sectors. The initial proposal included banning transactions involving the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines and reducing the oil price cap from $60 to $45 per barrel.

Soon after the package was announced, however, the EU reportedly postponed the effort to reduce the oil price cap.

The 18th round of sanctions is currently under debate. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, another Moscow-friendly European leader, has threatened to veto the package. Slovakia has not previously attempted to block EU sanctions against Russia.

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The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk

The EU intends to impose the harshest sanctions yet in response to Russia’s terror against civilians in Ukraine. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot announced such plans ahead of a Council of EU Ministers meeting in Brussels, UkrInform reports. 

Barrot condemned Moscow’s “limitless brutality”, pointing to the Kremlin’s deliberate missile and drone strikes on civilian infrastructure during recent nighttime attacks.

He emphasized that Russia’s war resembles an imperialist colonial campaign, and said that the Russian economy’s resources are increasingly being drained by it.

Russia’s economic resources will be depleted even further due to the sanctions package under discussion today, likely the most powerful since 2022, Barrot stated.

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According to the French minister, the goal is to significantly escalate pressure on Russian ruler Vladimir Putin, pushing him toward a ceasefire and negotiations that could lead to a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.

The upcoming EU measures are expected to target Russia’s financial sector, trade, energy industry, and access to dual-use technologies, which Moscow continues to seek through third countries.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russian strikes became possible due to “a coalition of killers”, meaning Russia, Iran, and North Korea.

He said that every nation bordering them should ask themselves whether they could protect lives if it continues spreading terror. 

Hungary and Slovakia blocked the European Union’s 18th sanctions package against Russia, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó confirmed on 23 June. Despite never supporting Kyiv militarily, Hungary also declared it would no longer support Ukraine militarily or financially, as Budapest continues aligning itself with Moscow’s interests inside the EU.

Budapest obstructs new sanctions package

According to Liga, Szijjártó announced at a press briefing streamed on Facebook:

“We, together with Slovakia, prevented the adoption of the sanctions package today.”

The move came in direct response to the European Commission’s ongoing push to reduce EU dependency on Russian energy.

Szijjártó justified the veto by referencing the EU’s June 2022 decision that had granted Hungary and Slovakia a full exemption from the Russian oil embargo introduced in the sixth sanctions package. Hungary believes that the ban on purchasing cheap Russian gas and oil violates previous agreements.

“The European Union decided unanimously that Hungary and Slovakia would receive a full exemption for an unlimited time from the oil embargo on Russian crude,” he claimed.

Veto used to counter Commission’s energy plan

Hungary cannot directly veto the Commission’s energy strategy, which only needs a qualified majority vote, so it blocked the sanctions package instead. Szijjártó described this majority-voting mechanism as allegedly “a very serious violation of European legal norms.”

He also warned that restricting access to Russian energy now, amid rising instability in the Middle East and threats to the Ormuz Strait, would lead to major losses and a supply crisis in Europe. 

Hungary says ‘no more’ to Ukraine

Szijjártó condemned what he called “increasingly pro-Ukrainian military sentiment” among EU foreign ministers. He noted that the EU has already provided Ukraine with 10 trillion forints—about €25 billion—this year alone.

“But today it was said that even that is not enough,” Orbán’s minister complained.

Hungary, he said, will block any further attempts to support Kyiv:

“We will not allow Hungarian money to be sent to Ukraine. We are not ready to support any new financial aid, any new arms deliveries, or any new military operations.”

The Group of Seven (G7) nations need to impose harsher sanctions on Moscow in order to secure a ceasefire in the war against Ukraine, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa said at the start of the G7 summit in Canada.

The G7 Leaders Summit kicked off on June 15 in Kananaskis, Canada, with official talks held June 16-17. While Ukraine hopes to win economic support and unified pressure against Russia, the rapidly escalating conflict between Israel and Iran may dominate this year's conference.

"To achieve peaceful strength we must put more pressure on Russia to secure a real ceasefire, to bring Russia to the negotiating table, and to end this war. Sanctions are critical to that end," von der Leyen said at a press briefing on June 15 attended by a Kyiv Independent journalist.  

Economic sanctions have been an effective intervention since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, von der Leyen said. She noted that combined G7 and European Union sanctions have decreased Russian oil and gas revenues by nearly 80% since February 2022.

"(T)he sanctions are working, and we will do more," she said.

Von der Leyen urged the G7 to adapt the economic restrictions proposed in the EU's 18th sanctions package, announced on June 10. The new measures target Russia's energy and banking sectors and propose a further reduction in the oil price cap, bringing the cap down from $60 to $45 per barrel.

"I will invite all G7 partners to join us in this endeavor," she said.

With no new US aid packages on the horizon, can Ukraine continue to fight Russia?

The U.S. has not announced any military aid packages for Ukraine in almost five months, pushing Kyiv to seek new alternatives. But time is running out quickly as Russian troops slowly advance on the eastern front line and gear up for a new summer offensive. “While Ukraine’s dependence on

The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Hodunova

Costa echoed the call for sanctions and the necessity of economic pressure in order to achieve a ceasefire. Europe is committed to "increasing additional sanctions to cripple (Russia's) ability to wage war and pressing for an unconditional ceasefire," he said.

Europe's call for unity may meet with resistance from the United States, which has assumed a dramatically different posture towards Ukraine and Russia since President Donald Trump took office in January. Trump has not imposed any new sanctions against Russia, even Moscow blatantly obstructs peace efforts and escalates mass strikes against Ukrainian cities.

The U.S. also reportedly opposes lowering the G7 oil price cap — a measure first introduced in December 2022 that prohibits Western companies from shipping, insuring, or otherwise servicing Russian oil sold above $60 per barrel.

The price cap debate has become more urgent as oil prices, which had fallen below the $60 cap in recent months, surged following Israel's recent strikes against Iran.

Despite U.S. resistance, the EU and the United Kingdom — backed by other European G7 countries and Canada — have said they are prepared to move forward with the proposal, even without Washington's endorsement.

President Volodymyr Zelensky, on the other hand, has said the EU sanctions and proposed price cap drop don't go far enough. Zelensky on June 11 said the EU's 18th round of sanctions "could be stronger" and proposed further slashing the oil price cap to $30 per barrel.

"A ceiling of $45 per barrel of oil is better than $60, that's clear, that's true. But real peace will come with a ceiling of $30," he said. "That's the level that will really change the mindset in Moscow."

Zelensky and Trump are expected to meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit on June 17. The meeting will mark their third in-person encounter since Trump took office.

High stakes, low resolve: What Ukraine can expect from the upcoming G7 summit

As world leaders prepare to gather in the remote community of Kananaskis in Alberta, Canada for the Group of Seven (G7) Leaders’ Summit on June 15-17, Russia’s war in Ukraine once again holds center stage — but views on how to address the three-year conflict diverge sharply. In the five months

The Kyiv IndependentDmytro Basmat

Russia is exploiting automatic medical exemptions in EU sanctions regulations to import dual-use goods for its military, Lithuania's Deputy Foreign Minister Gabija Grigaite-Daugirde told Bloomberg on June 12.

According to Grigaite-Daugirde, Lithuanian customs authorities blocked 28,854 goods in 2024 that were allegedly destined for Russia and Belarus "under the guise of medical exemption."

Many of the flagged shipments contained parts for motor vehicles, refrigerators, copiers, and microelectronics — all of which can have military applications.

"We have witnessed parts for motor vehicles, refrigerators, copying machines, and other types of microelectronics being exported directly to Russia, claiming that these are bound for medical use," she said.

Under current EU rules, medical exemptions are automatically granted, leaving customs authorities to investigate the shipments retroactively. Lithuania has called for reforms allowing exporters to apply for exemptions before shipments are approved.

"Leaving automatic exemptions from sanctions for medical goods is like closing a door but leaving a keyhole," Grigaite-Daugirde said. "Russia definitely finds a way to pass."

As Moscow shifts to a wartime economy and seeks Western-made technology for its arms production, its efforts to circumvent sanctions have grown "desperate," she added.

Lithuania, a key EU and NATO member bordering both Belarus and Russia's heavily militarized Kaliningrad exclave, has taken a hardline stance on enforcement and regularly pushes for tougher sanctions within the bloc.

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The Kyiv IndependentKollen Post