This was reported by the Financial Times, according to Ukrinform.

According to the newspaper, EU officials are looking for ways to speed up the adoption of more targeted financial restrictions by reducing member states' ability to use vetoes during negotiations.

The report says that Athens spent several weeks demanding an exemption for vessels operated by Dynagas in exchange for its approval of a range of unrelated restrictive measures targeting Russia's financial system and oil export revenues.

Three officials told the Financial Times that work is now underway to curb this increasingly common negotiating tactic, as EU capitals seek to protect companies that continue doing business with Russia.

One proposal gaining support within both the European Commission and the bloc's strongest supporters of Ukraine is to negotiate and adopt sanctions individually or in small thematic groups, rather than through large comprehensive packages. Officials believe this would reduce the risk of delays caused by objections to a single measure.

The official said that this could be the last sanctions package, adding that it had become clear that the current approach was no longer effective.

The EU adopted its 21st package of sanctions against Russia under the traditional approach of combining multiple measures into a single package requiring unanimous approval by all 27 member states. Such packages have often been timed to coincide with symbolic dates, including anniversaries of Russia's full-scale invasion.

However, national vetoes on individual measures have increasingly delayed unrelated sanctions that otherwise enjoy broad support across the EU.

This was highlighted last week when Greece refused to approve the latest package unless other member states agreed to exempt Dynagas, a shipping company owned by billionaire George Prokopiou, from sanctions adopted in October 2025 that prohibit it from transporting Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) to third countries beginning in January 2027.

Greece ultimately secured the exemption, allowing those shipments to continue. According to the report, this marked the first time the EU's overall sanctions regime against Russia had been weakened.

Athens' position effectively held up other measures, including steps designed to prevent Russia from earning billions of additional dollars from crude oil exports, the full asset freeze on 94 Russian financial institutions, and transaction bans affecting 33 banks.

Several diplomats involved in the negotiations described the tactic as outrageous.

Read also:EU's 21st Russia Sanctions Package: Ambitious Measures, Economic Trade-Offs

One diplomat said that they did not want to hear anyone talk about solidarity anymore.

Greek officials argued that the LNG transport ban had been adopted by mistake because it would hurt Dynagas rather than the Russian economy while benefiting competing shipowners from China and other non-EU countries.

Supporters of the new sanctions model argue that strong and effective measures could still be approved quickly by the Council of the European Union, although without the publicity typically associated with large sanctions packages. Under such a system, objections to one measure would no longer delay the adoption of unrelated sanctions.

Some officials cautioned, however, that the current package-based approach has helped member states recognize that sanctions impose economic costs across the bloc, making governments more willing to share those burdens.

A spokesperson for the European Commission declined to comment on any possible change in sanctions strategy.

The spokesperson added that, nevertheless, it was worth noting that after 21 sanctions packages since the start of the war, Russia was subject to a broad range of restrictive measures that were exerting significant pressure.

As Ukrinform previously reported, on July 23 the Council of the European Union adopted the 21st package of sanctions against Russia in response to the Kremlin's ongoing aggression against Ukraine.

The package includes sweeping economic restrictions targeting sectors most important to Russia's economy and its ability to sustain the war against Ukraine. It also contains the largest number of new sanctions designations in the past four years, covering 218 individuals and entities, including 48 individuals and 170 organizations.

Photo: Freepik