By Gabriela Baczynska
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Germany led calls urging caution against targeting China under new European Union sanctions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine during a first discussion among the bloc’s 27 countries on proposed new restrictions, five diplomatic sources said.
The EU is discussing its 11th package of sanctions since Russia invaded Ukraine, meant to focus on those circumventing existing trade restrictions.
The bloc’s executive proposed blacklisting several Chinese companies and introducing a new mechanism that would restrict EU exports to countries that flout sanctions.
That latter part raised concern with Germany, according to the sources. Several other countries also spoke of the need to strike a balance between enforcing sanctions and upsetting international diplomatic and trade ties, they said.
Italy backed Germany’s proposal to target foreign companies, rather than countries, over any circumvention of sanctions, according to the sources familiar with the Wednesday discussion, held behind closed doors. The diplomats spoke under condition of anonymity on Thursday.
Germany’s diplomatic mission to the EU declined comment.
German government sources in Berlin said they were critical of making the EU sanctions “extraterritorial” in a bid to fight circumvention.
(Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska, additional reporting by Andreas Rinke; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
