Further sanctions against Russia expected ‘in coming days’, says Paschal Donohoe

Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe has said he expects further sanctions against the Russian economy “in the coming days”.

The EU was considering what further steps could be taken on top of the current sanctions which were the “most comprehensive list of sanctions ever,” the Minister said.

Already their impact included the fall of the rouble and stock markets while the Russian central bank was unable to access foreign exchange reserves.

In an interview on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Mr Donohoe said: “I would expect further sanctions with regard to the Russian economy in the coming days, if not today.”

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Any decisions in relation to Russian oil and gas would have to be made together, it would not be helpful if any country were to take unilateral actions, he said. Mr Donohoe said that any action had to hurt Russia more than the EU. It was not a question of cost, it was about the impact on the Russian ability to finance the war.

The Minister said that oil and gas prices in Ireland would be kept under review by the Government, but that there were no further plans for additional measures until the next Budget in October. The energy credit which would be paid shortly was a strong response, he said.

Oireachtas committee

An Oireachtas committee will be told today that the European Union should tighten sanctions and suspend energy product imports from Russia.

The committee will also hear that Russian president Vladimir Putin’s name features “alongside that of Hitler and Stalin”.

Polish ambassador to Ireland Anna Sochanska will tell the EU affairs committee that Russia may also resort to a chemical weapons attack as its invasion has not gone as planned while up to five million refugees are expected to flee Ukraine.

More than 1.7 million refugees have already crossed the border, she will tell the committee but no refugee camps have yet been needed. “However, the refugee influx is likely to place enormous pressure on my country,” she will say.

“Experts estimate the total number of those fleeing Ukraine could be over 5 million,” she will say, calling for help from other countries such as Ireland, “which is already opening its borders and doors to Ukrainian refugees. I am amazed at the goodness that flows from the Irish people,” she will say.

But the committee will hear a call to “suspend import of coal, oil and petroleum products from Russia”alongside suspension of the existing Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline. “Billions go through Nord Stream 1 from Russia,” she will say, quoting her prime minister as saying the gas pipelines carry “the blood of soldiers, mothers and children. Measures adopted by the European Union were unprecedented, but so far they have not been strong enough to efficiently stop the Russian invasion of Ukraine”.

She will say that previous warnings from Poland about the rising Russian threat were “often dismissed as unfounded”.

“We are not afraid that we can expect the worst from Russia and its leader Putin, whose name now rightly appears alongside that of Hitler and Stalin,” the committee will be told.

Supporting Ukraine

Fine Gael committee chairman Joe McHugh said: “We need to have a system in place that is prepared, because the exodus of people from Ukraine is something that has never been seen before since [the second] World War.”

His party and committee colleague Neale Richmond, meanwhile, said Ireland should support Ukraine through EU accession “as quickly . . . as possible”. The committee will also hear from Ukraine’s ambassador and those of Georgia and Moldova on EU accession.

Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that Ireland will send food and has already dispatched body armour to Ukraine. Minister for Defence Simon Coveney said the step was “a further tangible demonstration of Ireland’s support for . . . the people of Ukraine”.

Irish students who have had to leave Ukraine in the middle of their studies will be able to continue their education in Ireland, according to Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris who met the Irish Universities Association on Monday. The sector has agreed it will provide places for Irish students who have had to leave, the Department of Education confirmed.

The majority of these students were studying medicine or dentistry.