Despite the threat to European economies, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed enthusiastic support for a U.S. Senate bill proposing hard-hitting tariffs on countries trading with Russia, following a meeting with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R) on Monday, June 2nd.
Von der Leyen’s office declared that the Commission president “made the objective clear: we need a real ceasefire, we need Russia at the negotiating table, and we need to end this war. Pressure works, as the Kremlin understands nothing else.”
The U.S. Senate’s draft legislation includes the imposition of secondary tariffs of “not less” than 500% on nations that “knowingly sell, supply, transfer, or purchase” Russian oil, natural gas, uranium, or other petrochemical products. If implemented, this clause could heavily impact EU countries that still rely on Russian energy sources.
Currently, EU countries such as Hungary and Slovakia continue to import Russian pipeline oil; France, Spain, and the Netherlands purchase Russian LNG; and several member states operate Russian-made nuclear reactors reliant on Russian fuel.
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D) described the sanctions as “bone-crushing” and predicted they would isolate the Russian economy “on a trade island.” Graham added: “This is the most draconian bill I’ve ever seen in my life in the Senate.”
