European Commission to freeze funds of patriarch of Russian Orthodox Church

The European Commission has proposed to freeze the funds of the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Cyril, which are stored in the EU. The bishop was appointed as the patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' and Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church on 1 February 2009. Since then, he has been recognised as one of the closest allies of President Vladimir Putin and even labeled his regime as “God’s miracle.” The religious head also justified Moscow's invasion of Ukraine on spiritual grounds, describing it as a “metaphysical” battle against the West and its “gay parades," according to AP. 

Meanwhile, on Thursday, EC confirmed Cyril was included in the tentative list of sanctions. In a statement, it said, “The patriarch was included in the draft black list, which already includes hundreds of military officers and businessmen close to the Kremlin, whom the EU accuses of supporting the war in Ukraine.” The Commission further added that the proposed sanctions include a ban on entry into the EU, but for this they must be supported by members of the European Union.

EU mulls oil embargo in Sixth sanctions package

The European Union on Wednesday proposed a new package of sanctions against the Russian Federation, including a blanket ban on Russian oil imports. Furthermore, EU chief Ursula Von der Leyen also outlined that the EU countries will phase out dependence on Russian gas by the end of this year. The draft sanctions also predominantly target financial institutions, including Sberbank, Russia's largest lender. During her address at the European Parliament, the EU chief stressed that for Ukraine to emerge victoriously, it is necessary for the country to be able to "rebuild." She introduced the "relief and reconstruction" initiative for Ukraine, under which the 27 nations bloc is expected to extend immediate relief and short-term economic support to help Ukraine "cope with the fall out of the war."

(Image: AP)