EU failed to reach agreement on price cap on Russian oil, member states "too divided"

After the introduction of the draft gas price limit, which has been called a "joke", the EU has collapsed on the Russian oil price limit
.
On November 23, local time, the EU failed to reach an agreement on setting a price cap on Russian oil, and there are still internal differences
on the key price ceiling level.
The EU is likely to continue meeting on November 24 to discuss the matter
.

The New York Times reported on November 23 that diplomats from all 27 EU member states had been meeting that night to try to hammer out the final details of the price limit, but the effort was frustrated
.
The most crucial part of the agreement was "what price should be capped," but member states' views on the issue were "too divergent" and some countries demanded further changes
to the policy.

The New York Times: EU diplomats are divided on the specifics of the price cap

The report quoted several EU diplomats who were directly involved in the negotiations or briefed on the talks, especially from countries such as Poland and Ukraine, as saying that the price limit proposed by the Group of Seven (G7) was too high and should be lowered in order to hit Russian
revenues.

On the other hand, countries such as Greece, Cyprus and Malta believe that price limits will affect their large maritime industries, so they demand that the price limit level be set higher, and some countries even claim compensation for losses that their maritime business may suffer as a result of price limits
.
France, Germany and Italy, the three EU member states in the G7 that have pushed for price limits on Russian oil, support the US position that a flexible mechanism should be set for the price range and adjusted
according to the actual situation.

The Wall Street Journal also noted the setback in EU negotiations on November 23
.
Four diplomats told the outlet that the European Union is considering setting the price ceiling between $65 and $70, but this level exceeds the current price
of Russian oil.
Some Polish officials have proposed capping $20 a barrel, and Polish diplomats in the European Union have warned at one point that Poland will not agree to a plan to set a
price cap at $70.
The Ambassador of Malta has said-for-tat that Malta will not agree to a price ceiling
below $70 a barrel.

U.
S.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement on September 2 this year that G7 finance ministers have reached an agreement
on imposing restrictions on Russian oil prices.
According to sources, the final form of this price cap is expected to be announced
by December 5.

A senior official of the US Treasury Department said on the 22nd that "the G7 should soon announce a price cap on Russian oil exports, which may be adjusted several times a year"
.
A source said the G7 could decide on
the price ceiling level as soon as Nov.
23 or 24 local time.

Want to limit the price of Russian oil but difficult to bridge internal differences, the EU finally reached a draft on natural gas price limit, but was ridiculed as a "joke"
.
The European Commission finally proposed a draft on setting a natural gas price ceiling the day before (22nd), setting the natural gas benchmark price ceiling level at 275 euros / MWh
.
However, this ceiling is much higher than the current gas price level, and the plan has been criticized as actually difficult to take effect, and some have even criticized it as a "joke"
.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who is in charge of energy work, warned on November 21 that if a cap is placed on the price of Russian oil, Russia will completely stop selling oil and cut production
sharply.
Russia will not supply oil and petroleum products to countries that impose price limits on Russian oil, and will redistribute oil supplies to partners
who use market pricing.

Novak warned that imposing a price cap on energy and "politicizing energy" would only lead to supply shortages, an "unprecedented intervention" in the principles of market operation, and would inevitably lead to a decline
in investment in the industry as a whole.