The European Commission (EC) unveiled its 18th sanctions package against Russia in a press conference on Tuesday, targeting exports, revenue streams, and lowering the price cap on Russian oil. The EU said this package serves to increase pressure on Russia in light of its ongoing war with Ukraine.

At the press conference, EU Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas said that the current EU sanctions on Russia have been working, citing that the nation has lost “billions in oil revenues” and that “its economy is shrinking and GDP has dropped.” She explained that the EU hopes to work with the United States and the G7 to lower the price cap on Russian oil from $60 to $45 per barrel. She added that the previous sanctions package targeting Russia’s shadow fleet had an effective impact in reducing oil revenues from exports by 30 percent.

The EC emphasized that sanctions will reduce Russia’s ability to fund and sustain its invasion of Ukraine. EC President Ursula von der Leyen stated: “Russia’s goal is not peace, it is might… [S]trength is the only language that Russia will understand.”

Notably, the EC proposed to strengthen a transaction ban for Russian infrastructure, specifically on two Nord Stream pipelines, an announcement which aligns with the EU’s “Roadmap to fully end EU dependency on Russian Energy.”

Ukraine’s head of the presidential office, Andriy Yermak, expressed that it was “crucial that the EU’s 18th sanctions package include restrictions on the banking and energy sectors, Russia’s shadow fleet, and secondary sanctions.”

Von der Leyen stated: “This war must end. We need a ceasefire, and Russia must come to the negotiating table with a serious proposal.”