Lithuanian president on US sanctions against Rosneft, Lukoil: This is a game changer

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said this ahead of the European Union summit in Brussels, Ukrinform reports.

"I think we received very positive news this morning from the United States. I think this is a game changer and those sanctions imposed on Russian companies Rosneft and Lukoil will directly affect the oil and gas industry which is generating the revenues for Russia's war machine," Nauseda said.

According to Nauseda, there has been enough time to understand that negotiations with Russia can only be conducted from a position of power and "by putting the gun on the table."

"I think the first reaction of Russian propaganda, I can expect it will be hysterical, but sooner or later they will understand that it leads to the collapse of Russian economy and Russian economy is currently not in the good shape. And if this impact will be visible, I think they will just switch into recession or maybe even to stagflation," he added.

He noted that sanctions imposed by the U.S., the EU, the UK, and other countries will sooner or later force Russia to sit down at the negotiating table and start discussions.

As reported by Ukrinform, the European Union has approved its 19th package of sanctions against Russia over its ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Earlier, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced sanctions against major Russian oil companies Rosneft and Lukoil, calling on Moscow to immediately agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine.

Photo: European Union