The European Union is gearing up for its 13th round of sanctions against Russia, aiming to coincide with second anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24th, 2024
According to Bloomberg sources, the measures could include:
- Expanding the list of people under sanctions.
- Tightening trade restrictions.
- Reducing Moscow’s ability to circumvent current EU’s sanctions through third countries and companies within the EU.
- This 13th round of sanctions marks a significant EU’s efforts signaling unwavering commitment to pressuring Russia and supporting Ukraine.
The EU implemented the 12th round of sanctions against Russia just in December 2023. As a result of the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine, the Russian economy contracted by 8.5 percent in 2022. According to Statista, real GDP will fall by 2% in 2021–2023, while inflation will reach 6%. In addition, The Russian currency, the ruble, has experienced significant fluctuations in value during 2022 and 2023. After an initial decline, it saw a temporary recovery but has since dropped again. Overall, it’s down nearly 20% compared to early February 2022. It’s important to note that the full impact of the sanctions is still unfolding and will likely take time to become fully apparent.
However, it is still unclear whether the sanctions will be able to force Russia to end the war of aggression against Ukraine.
