EU scrambles for Russia sanctions deal amid France standoff
EU member states are struggling to reach a consensus on extending sanctions against Russia due to French and Slovakian demands to remove billionaire Alisher Usmanov from the blacklist. The standoff threatens to delay the renewal of asset freezes and visa bans.
Why it matters
The internal disagreement highlights the complexity of maintaining a unified European foreign policy response to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
EU countries scrambled on Monday (September 21, 2026) for a deal to extend sanctions on Russia over the war on Ukraine after France demanded oligarch Alisher Usmanov be taken off the blacklist.
The 27-nation bloc last week pushed back a deadline for prolonging its asset freezes and visa bans on some 3,000 individuals and entities to midnight Tuesday (2200 GMT Tuesday).
Ambassadors in Brussels were set to meet for talks on Monday (September 21, 2026) afternoon after failing to make a breakthrough in the morning.
All EU countries are required to agree to extend the sanctions — a key part of the bloc's response to Russia's war since 2022 — every six months.
This time around an agreement has been held up as France has joined Slovakia in calling for Russian-Uzbek billionaire Usmanov to be removed from the blacklist.
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