As of midnight Russian vessels are no longer allowed to enter EU ports, Romanian ports included. The ban also covers ships that replaced the Russian flag with the colours of another state after February 24 when the war in Ukraine started, but not those which need assistance or shelter for safety reasons or those which have saved lives at the sea. In an interview to Sunday’s issue of the German magazine Bild am Sonntag, the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said the next stage of EU sanctions will target Russia’s oil and banking sectors, particularly the country’s largest bank, Sberbank. She added that Brussels was working on smart mechanisms to include Russian oil in the new list of sanctions, so as to reduce the financing for Vladimir Putin’s invasion army. EU member states are currently paying for Russian gas and oil via Sberbank and Gazprombank, which have so far been exempt from Europe’s sanctions, Reuters explains. Meanwhile, Russia carries on attacks on several cities in Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv, in response to the sinking of its Black Sea flagship, the Moskva. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Ukraine, Russian forces shelled several cities in the south of Ukraine, whereas in Herson Ukrainian troops continue to attack the occupying Russian forces.
