Germany's Wadephul calls new EU sanctions 'unprecedented' blow to Russia

German foreign Minister Johann Wadephul described a new raft of punitive measures against Russia as an "unprecedented sanction blow" to President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine.

"We are making it harder for Putin to continue his war of aggression in violation of international law, and his cynical attempt to wear down Ukraine's civilian population through murderous bombing campaigns," Wadephul said on Monday as EU foreign ministers met in Luxembourg to finalize the sanctions package.

Who do the sanctions target?

It targets some 1,600 individuals and businesses related to Russia's war effort, and another 77 people and groups related to what the EU sees as illegal elections in occupied Ukrainian terrorities.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in a post on X that this was "the single largest expansion of our sanctions list since Russia started its war...More than half are connected to the production chain for ballistic missiles."

"We are making it significantly harder, slower and more expensive for Russia to produce the weapons it uses to kill Ukrainians," she added.

Although he could not attend the Luxembourg meeting due to a party conference in Berlin, Wadephul said: "The message is clear: Russia cannot and will not win this war."

However, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk appeared to imply that sanctions need to go even further as the conflict was set to enter its fifth bitter winter.

"This is the moment when the entire West...should show Russia and Putin that it is ready to pursue a policy of containing Russia by even more decisive means," he told the Warsaw Security Forum, referring to EU sanctions. "That is why I will go to Brussels to persuade all our European partners to seriously consider increasing sanctions against Russia."

What is the latest development in the war?

Russian forces have repeatedly stepped up attacks on Ukraine's critical energy infrastructure every autumn since its invasion, hoping to cripple heating and other necessary utilitiesahead of winter.

US President Donald Trump declared that there was an "energy ceasefire" in place between Russia and Ukraine over the weekend. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had no idea what Trump was referring to and that Russia had continued to target energy facilities unabated.