EU lawmakers on Thursday (April 7) overwhelmingly approved a resolution for “an immediate full embargo on Russian imports of oil, coal, nuclear fuel and gas.”
In a non-binding resolution adopted with 513 votes for, 22 against and 19 abstentions, EU lawmakers also called for the EU to step up delivery of weapons and to help with the creation of a special U.N. tribunal for war crimes in Ukraine.
“This is a very, very important moment and a significant step. I think the position of this parliament is clear and sends the strongest of messages of support to the people on the frontline in Ukraine,” EU Parliament president Roberta Mestola told lawmakers after the vote.
Outrage over killings of civilians in the Ukrainian town of Bucha near Kyiv appears to have galvanised Western support. Russia denies any wrongdoing and says they were staged.
But while a possible EU ban on Russian oil and gas would cut off a significant source of revenue for Moscow’s war, it would also hit European economies and push up soaring gas prices.
(Reuters)