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- To withdraw from the trip: the EU threatens Russian diplomats with withdrawal of accreditation
To withdraw from the trip: the EU threatens Russian diplomats with withdrawal of accreditation
A new date has been set for the approval of the 19th package of anti-Russian measures. Now the European Parliament (EP) has told Izvestia that they can agree on it on October 22-23 at the next EU summit. The list is going to include restrictions on movement within the European Union for Russian diplomats. The EP notes: in practice, the measure can also be used against their family members. Grigory Karasin, head of the Federation Council's International Affairs committee, told Izvestia that such a precedent would violate the Vienna Convention and international practice of diplomatic communication. Moscow promises to respond to this. It is becoming more difficult for the European Union as a whole to coordinate all new sanctions against Russia, the expert community notes. Work on this package was announced back in August.
Travel restrictions for Russian diplomats
The discussion of the 19th package of anti-Russian sanctions is in full swing. And although the EU leaders have not been able to agree on its content for a month, the member states want to add restrictions for Russian diplomats to it. The Czech Republic has been pushing for this initiative for a long time. According to the Financial Times, diplomats working in EU capitals will have to inform the governments of other countries about their travel plans before crossing the borders of the host country.
Any violation of the requirement for prior notification of travel may result in the revocation of diplomatic accreditation, Czech MEP Tomasz Zdechowski told Izvestia.
— The implementation of this measure is likely to depend on closer coordination between EU member states and their internal security services. Any violation of the travel notification requirement can indeed lead to the withdrawal of diplomatic accreditation, as this would constitute a serious violation of the principles of the Vienna Convention and trust between the EU and Russia," he said.
The politician clarified that this measure would primarily concern Russian diplomats working in the EU.
"However, in practice, travel restrictions can also be imposed on family members if there is a suspicion that they are being used for intelligence activities or influence," the MEP added.
At the same time, the measure does not reverse the decisions that were taken at the national level. For example, in the Czech Republic, there is already a ban on entry to the country for all Russian citizens with diplomatic and official passports, unless they have national accreditation from the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The EU believes that such sanctions will be preventive measures that can protect them from Russian spies allegedly working under "diplomatic cover."
"I believe that this step will contribute to strengthening Europe's internal security,— Tomasz Zdechowski said. — There is strong support in the European Parliament for tougher measures against Russian diplomatic activity in the EU.
Vladislav Maslennikov, Director of the Department of European Affairs at the Russian Foreign Ministry, had previously stated that Moscow viewed the threat of restrictions on the freedom of movement of Russian diplomats as a confrontational step. And she will respond adequately to the actions of Brussels.
Representatives of the Czech Republic have already proposed restricting the movement of Russian diplomats within the Schengen area to the territory of the country of accreditation during the preparation of the 12th package of EU sanctions in 2023. However, this initiative did not receive significant development at that time. Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova noted that such measures violate the provisions of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, to which all EU member states have signed.
— The violation of the spirit of the Vienna Convention is obvious. We must take this into account," Grigory Karasin, chairman of the Federation Council's International Affairs Committee, told Izvestia. — We need to fight this. And, probably, we should count on the fact that over time it will reach those people who impose these restrictions. This is a violation of the international practice of diplomatic communication.
Restrictions on the activities of diplomatic missions are not something fundamentally new, Egor Sergeev, a senior researcher at the MGIMO Institute of International Studies, noted in a conversation with Izvestia. For example, Russian diplomats working at the Russian Permanent Mission to the United Nations are prohibited from traveling outside the 25-mile zone in the United States.
"The restrictions on movement being discussed are certainly discriminatory measures, but our diplomats have long been under even tougher, virtually unprecedented pressure," Sergeyev said.
He recalled that the drastic steps include not only the illegal seizure of diplomatic property in the United States, but also a series of expulsions of Russian representatives, including from European countries, as a result of which the staff of embassies and consulates has been seriously reduced. In addition, the work of diplomats is burdened by regular provocations, including drone flights over diplomatic missions and the throwing of bottles with a combustible mixture on their territory.
The introduction of such restrictions is one of the ways to wage a hybrid war against Russia, Vladimir Vinokurov, editor—in-chief of the Diplomatic Service magazine and professor at the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said in a conversation with Izvestia.
Russian Embassy in Prague
"The fact that the European Union wants to include such a provision in the 19th package of sanctions once again shows that today Brussels has completely forgotten that there is a Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations," the expert noted.
According to him, restrictions on diplomats also violate the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. Both documents state the right of diplomats to travel through the territory of any country with a diplomatic passport without restrictions. Incidents involving drones are used by the EU as a pretext for such restrictions. Their true goal is to exert moral and psychological pressure on Russian diplomatic representatives.
Why is it increasingly difficult for the EU to agree on new sanctions
At the same time, discussions are continuing on the main part of the sanctions package. Among other things, it promises to include a ban on the import of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) and increased measures against tankers that, according to the EU, transport Russian oil. The European Union intends to add 118 more vessels to the blacklist (there are already about 560 in total). This time, restrictions will include restrictions for banks conducting operations for the Russian Federation, cryptoplatforms, as well as sanctions against the MIR and SBP payment systems.
Another set of restrictions includes measures against circumvention of sanctions in third countries. Restrictions are provided for traders, oil refineries and other participants in logistics chains outside the European Union. They will be subject to restrictions for facilitating schemes that allow them to evade the price ceiling and the embargo on Russian oil.
Earlier, Hungary blocked the 19th package of sanctions. Budapest was unhappy with the steps to accelerate the abandonment of Russian energy resources, but during the behind-the-scenes bargaining, European officials apparently managed to find a compromise and Hungary's objections were withdrawn.
Subsequently, Austria created a pause in the adoption of the new package. Vienna proposes to include in it the lifting of sanctions from the former assets of businessman Oleg Deripaska (shares worth about € 2 billion in the Austrian construction company Strabag) in order to compensate Raiffeisen Bank International for the €2 billion recovery amount that the bank had to pay by court order in Russia, the Financial Times writes.
According to the newspaper, representatives of at least a dozen EU countries at the summit last week said they would not be able to support the sanctions package if it included Vienna's proposal. Further negotiations are scheduled to take place on October 8.
Tomasz Zdechowski believes that a new package of sanctions can be adopted at the EU leaders' summit to be held in Brussels on October 22-23, "especially if a political agreement is reached between the member states by that date."
For the first time, the European Commission announced a new package of restrictions back in August. Then, a month later, the first consultations and discussions followed. The topic of sanctions was raised at the informal EU summit in Copenhagen, but it was not possible to fully agree. By the way, the 18th package was also accepted after long and exhausting negotiations.
In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult for the European Union to coordinate large packages of sanctions for several reasons. Among them: the weakening of the association's economy due to the adoption of previous restrictions, Ekaterina Arapova, head of the research program at the Institute of International Studies and Deputy Dean of the MGIMO Faculty of International Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, tells Izvestia.
— The European Union is now weakened by the initial sanctions packages, which have resulted in quite serious stagnation and the need to tighten monetary policy in 2022 and 2023. The consequences are still being felt, the economic position of the association is quite weak — this is the first point," says the expert.
The second factor can be considered as disagreements within the association itself.
— There are a number of countries where the negative effect of anti-Russian sanctions is accumulating, and they are stagnating even more, and in some countries the decline is observed to a lesser extent. The gap between them is widening, and this is followed by a growing difference in interest in accepting the next packages," says Arapova.
Also, do not forget about the situation in the international arena: global trade is currently at a standstill. Finding new drivers for economic growth is becoming more difficult, as any sanctions package becomes a deterrent, the expert concluded.
The most difficult thing is to agree on the introduction of energy measures. European Parliament deputy Ivan David stressed in a conversation with Izvestia that energy supplies from Russia cannot be stopped completely — some states demand tougher measures, some refuse. The main opponents are traditionally Hungary and Slovakia, which are still actively buying oil and gas from the Russian Federation.
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