The European Union has indefinitely postponed the adoption of its 19th sanctions package against Russia, Politico reported on Tuesday, citing officials familiar with the decision.
European capitals were informed of the delay on Monday afternoon, though it remains unclear when the package might be finalized or what prompted the holdup. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas had said earlier that the bloc’s latest measures “should be ready” by the end of the month.
Some member states have pushed for the new sanctions to include tighter restrictions on visas for Russian citizens. Visa issuance currently falls under the authority of individual countries, leading to wide variation. Poland and the Netherlands, for example, stopped issuing tourist visas to Russians after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, while Spain and Slovakia recently reopened application centers in Moscow.
Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of the late opposition activist Alexei Navalny, urged the EU not to impose blanket tourist visa restrictions, arguing that such a step would punish ordinary Russians and bolster Kremlin propaganda. More than 500,000 Russians received Schengen visas in 2024, according to European Commission data, a sharp increase from the year before.
The 19th sanctions package delay also comes amid new pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, who called on NATO members over the weekend to halt purchases of Russian oil.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he was “ready to do major sanctions on Russia” once allies “agreed, and started, to do the same thing.” He also suggested NATO countries impose tariffs of 50-100% on Chinese goods, claiming it would weaken Beijing’s “strong control” over Russia.
Trump’s proposal is unlikely to gain traction. Several NATO members, including Turkey, Slovakia and Hungary, remain heavily dependent on Russian energy and would be reluctant to rupture ties with Moscow.
The EU, meanwhile, pledged to phase out Russian energy imports by 2027 but has resisted calls for an abrupt cutoff.
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