EU sanctions on Russia fuel high inflation, expose internal rifts

The decision by the European Union (EU) earlier this week to ban 90 per cent of oil imports from Russia by the end of the year is aimed at crimping the Russian economy amid the high-profile crisis in Ukraine.

But the move, part of a wider array of sanctions, is also likely to result in still higher energy prices, while exposing political rifts within the 27-nation bloc, experts said.

The European leaders’ move covers only seaborne imports of Russian oil, allowing a temporary exception for pipeline oil. This carve-out from the ban benefits Hungary, a land-locked EU member state that gets nearly all of its crude from Russia through pipelines, Xinhua news agency reported.