METALSWill The EU Ban Russian Aluminum?
It is estimated that the European Union still imports the metal from Russia to the tune of 2.3 billion euros ($2.5 billion) per year. The bloc also exports various aluminum products to Russia, worth some 190 million euros. About 85 percent of Russia’s aluminum business — including the lucrative construction and automotive industries – are so far untouched by sanctions. EU member states want to change that.
Last week, the EU passed its latest sanctions package on Russia to coincide with the second anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
As I discussed in a previous briefing, the measures introduced were weak, consisting largely of additional asset freezes and visa bans.
The rather feeble package also prompted internal criticism within Brussels, especially from more hawkish EU member states, with the argument that the European Union must be more ambitious in sanctioning the Kremlin in the future.
Speaking to several EU diplomats, who wish to remain anonymous because they don’t have the authority to speak on the record, the European Commission has promised to start work on a new sanctions package with immediate effect. And this time it will try to include sectoral sanctions that would have a much greater impact on the Russian economy.
One of those sectors is aluminum. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland have pushed for both import and export bans on the metal for a while now.
Officials from the four nations noted in a discussion paper, seen by RFE/RL, that “Europe’s imports of aluminum not only fund Russia’s war economy but also benefit Kremlin-backed oligarchs and state companies.”
It is estimated that the European Union still imports the metal from Russia to the tune of 2.3 billion euros ($2.5 billion) per year. The bloc also exports various aluminum products to Russia, worth some 190 million euros.
The only sanction the bloc has enacted in this field has been a very specific and targeted import ban on aluminum wire, foil, tubes, and pipes produced in Russia.
That still leaves 85 percent of the aluminum business — including the lucrative construction and automotive industries — untouched so far.
Deep Background
This could change as the aluminum industry in Europe is now calling for more sanctions on Russia.
Representatives of Europe’s aluminum industry in Brussels have argued that on moral grounds “business as usual” with Russia cannot continue.
But there are also compelling economic reasons.
Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, imports of Russian aluminum represented well over 30 percent of the EU’s total. Now, Russian aluminum represents only around 8 percent of the bloc’s imports due to the industry decoupling from Moscow voluntarily. By relying on it less, there is less to lose by sanctioning.
