EU Ministers to Discuss 19th Russia Sanctions Package at Copenhagen Meeting

European Union foreign ministers will hold their first high-level talks on a planned 19th package of sanctions against Russia during an informal “Gymnich” meeting in Copenhagen on August 29–30.

The Gaze reports this, referring to European Pravda.

The gathering, hosted by Denmark as the current holder of the EU presidency, will dedicate a specific session to “increasing pressure on Russia,” including through new restrictive measures and efforts to curb the Kremlin’s so-called shadow fleet used to bypass oil export restrictions.

According to an EU diplomat familiar with the agenda, the sanctions proposal is being prepared by the European Commission in coordination with the European External Action Service. 

While details of the measures remain under discussion, the new package is expected to reinforce existing trade, energy, and maritime restrictions imposed since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The “Gymnich” format, introduced in 1974, allows EU foreign ministers to meet twice a year under the rotating presidency for candid, closed-door discussions without aides present. The name comes from the first such meeting, held at Gymnich Castle in Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia.

As The Gaze reported earlier, the European Union does not intend to lift or weaken the sanctions imposed on Russia, but is instead preparing a new, 19th package of sanctions, which could be adopted as early as September 2025.