EU fails to agree on new sanctions on Russia ahead of fourth anniversary of war – Europe live

… and on that note, it’s a wrap for today!

• The European Union has failed to agree on the 20th package of sanctions against Russia ahead of tomorrow’s fourth anniversary of the full-scale Russian aggression on Ukraine (16:35).

• The move comes just as top EU figures are expected in Kyiv on Tuesday to mark the anniversary (16:39), with several leaders also set to travel to the Ukrainian capital.

• EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said it was “regrettable” the decision could not be made today as Hungary continues to block the process amid escalating tensions with Ukraine over oil deliveries with the Druzhba pipeline (16:41, 16:45).

• Hungary’s veto (11:03) has also blocked the payout of the EU’s €90bn loan for Ukraine already agreed in December, prompting angry reaction from EU leaders (10:25, 10:29, 10:38, 12:00, 12:17, 17:18).

• The standoff comes less than two months before Hungary goes to the polls in a closely contested election which could see Viktor Orbán ousted after 16 years in power, prompting questions about whether the conflict is used for domestic campaigning (9:52, 9:57, 16:45).

• Separately, Slovakia also remains in dispute with Ukraine over the same issue, moving to block electricity exports to the wartorn country in retaliation (17:08).

• Meanwhile, Ukraine’s former commander in chief, Valerii Zaluzhnyi warned about the rapidally shifting nature of war in a high-profile speech in London (13:15, 13:35).

• Ukrainian officials suggested that the next round of talks with Russia and the US could take place as early as this week (14:21, 14:51).

In other news,

• The European parliament has decided to pause the ratification process relating to the US trade deal struck with Donald Trump last July in Scotland (15:38) amid concerns over legal uncertainty associated with transatlantic trade (12:08, 12:31, 12:33, 15:15).

• 38-year-old Rob Jetten has been sworn in as the Netherland’s new prime minister, the youngest premier in history, leading a fragile three-party minority administration (10:48, 11:16).

And that’s all from me, Jakub Krupa, for today.

If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at jakub.krupa@theguardian.com.

I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa.

From the frontline to underground shelters to children’s funerals, Julia Kochetova has captured the war in Ukraine with power and humanity for the Guardian.

Kochetova is unlike most of the people who cover Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for the Guardian. The photographer lives in Kyiv; she is Ukrainian. It is her country that is being invaded, her friends who are being killed.

“In my case, and in the case of Ukrainian journalists, you have the same scars as those you photograph: you match scars with scars,” she told the Guardian’s chief culture writer Charlotte Higgins ahead of a major show in Amsterdam showing her work.

Separately, European Council president António Costa has reportedly urged Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán to honour an EU deal for a €90bn loan to Ukraine in a private letter, seen by Reuters.

“When leaders reach a consensus, they are bound by their decision. Any breach of this commitment constitutes a violation of the principle of sincere cooperation,” Costa, who chairs summits of EU leaders, said.

“No Member State can be allowed to undermine the credibility of decisions taken collectively by the European Council,” Costa wrote, referring to the loan, which was approved by EU leaders at a summit in December.

The loan continues to be blocked by Hungary together with the 20th package of sanctions against Russia amid growing tensions between Budapest and Kyiv over oil transit via the Druzhba pipeline.

Just as Kallas was wrapping up her press conference, Slovak prime minister Robert Fico has announced plans to stop emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine from Slovakia.

In a video posted on Facebook, he said he wanted to speak with Zelenskyy directly to discuss the situation, but was told the Ukrainian president wouldn’t have time to speak to him until after Wednesday.

Fico said that in practice the move means that should Ukraine ask Slovakia for help with stabilising its energy grid, it will not receive any further support, with the state-owned Slovak operator SEPS told not to respond to any such request.

He said the move will be cancelled as soon as Ukraine resumes oil transit to Slovakia via the Druzhba pipeline. Despite reports of damage from the war, Fico claimed the pipeline still remains operational and called Ukraine’s refusal to transport oil unacceptable.

The Slovak PM also warned that he was ready to escalate the dispute further if there is no movement from Kyiv.

Kallas also somewhat in passing says that if the EU cannot progress the €90bn loan for Ukraine because of Hungary’s opposition, it may have to go back to consider moving against the Russian frozen assets again.

The difference here is that there would be no need for unanimity for that move, but it would be highly controversial as that measures is also opposed by a number of countries – including Belgium, where most assets are stored.

There is also a bit of an update on other sanctions, related to Venezuela, as Kallas says she will propose to lift sanctions against the interim president, Delcy Rodríguez.

She says there has been some positive movement from the Venezuelan interim authorities towards Europe, and this will need a response, but says “whether we have consensus, we will see.”

EU’s Kallas gets also asked if there is a link between US secretary of state Marco Rubio’s recent visit to Hungary and Slovakia and the two countries’ increasingly assertive attitude towards Ukraine, but she declines to be drawn into speculations on that point.

Kallas gets asked whether the Hungarian government’s decision to block the package – and the loan – is part of its campaigning ahead of April’s parliamentary elections.

Somewhat echoing Poland’s Sikorski (9:57), she says she’s surprised by Hungary’s decision knowing its own history of struggle against Russia’s imperialist ambitions, as she “finds it very hard to believe that it would bring you any bonus points in the elections.”

She says it’s “regrettable” that no decision was made today, and adds that the European Commission and the European Council presidents, who are both expected in Kyiv tomorrow, intend to take it up directly with the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán.

Kallas offers a bit more detail on the talks today, as she says the EU is continuing talks with Hungarian and Slovak officials “on different levels … to move on this package.”

“It’s not easy. It’s never easy, but the work continues.

I really regret that we didn’t [secure] an agreement today considering that tomorrow is the sad anniversary of the start of this war, and we really need to send strong signals to Ukraine that we keep on helping Ukraine, but also putting more pressure on Russia.”

This will be a deeply frustrating moment for EU leaders, and particularly for some of its most senior representatives – including commission president Ursula von der Leyen – who are expected in Kyiv on the fourth anniversary of the full-scale aggression tomorrow.

This is not the message they wanted to take with them to the Ukrainian capital.

Kallas says that the EU needs to “flip the script from [putting] pressure on Ukraine to surrender territory to [asking for] what Russia must do to meet the basic conditions for a just and lasting peace.”

She says the EU also needs to be clear on what its expectations are as “Russia’s maximalist demands cannot be met with minimalist response.”

She says that she decided to put a limit on the maximum size of the Russian mission to the EU, capping it at 40 people. “We will not tolerate abuse of diplomatic power,” she says.

Kallas confirms that the ministers have failed to reach an agreement on the 20th package of sanctions against Russia in time for tomorrow’s anniversary of the full-scale aggression.

“This is a setback and message we did not want to send today, but the work continues,” she says.

Aaaaand… Kallas is here.

I will bring you the key lines here.

We’re still waiting for Kallas to show up.

In the meantime, there’s an update about the Druzhba oil pipeline which is at the centre of Hungary’s conflict with Ukraine, as Reuters reported that Ukrainian drones have struck a Russian pumping station serving the pipeline.

The overnight strike caused a fire at the station more than 1,200 km (750 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border, added the official from Ukraine’s SBU security service who did not give any details on any broader impact on the pipeline.

Reuters noted that the attack, the latest of a string of Ukrainian assaults on the route, risks exacerbating tensions between Ukraine and its Hungary and Slovakia, who have accused Kyiv of trying to block oil flows through the pipeline to their refineries.

EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas is expected to brief the media shortly following today’s meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers in Brussels, and she will no doubt be asked about the latest on Hungary’s attempts to block the €90bn loan and the new round of sanctions against Russia.

I will bring you the latest here.

The European parliament has just decided to pause the ratification process relating to the US trade deal struck with Donald Trump last July in Scotland.

A vote tomorrow morning in the Trade Committee has been postponed.

Anna Cavazzini, trade policy spokesperson for the Greens/EFA group, said:

“Given the current enormous uncertainty, a vote would be unjustifiable. The new tariffs on EU exports are over 15 percent, thus violating the deal. At the same time, Trump continues to blithely announce arbitrary tariffs. This lack of trust prevents simply rubber-stamping the implementation of the US deal now.

The top priority must be finding a solution for the remaining 50% tariffs on steel, aluminum, and related products. The ball is now in the US’s court. Tariffs are extremely unpopular and have not led to the industrial jobs promised by Trump.”

Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk is the latest European leader to criticise Hungary for its attempt to block the €90bn EU loan for Ukraine and the 20th package of sanctions against Russia.

Speaking alongside Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Støre at a press conference in Poland, Tusk said Viktor Orbán’s decisions amounted to an act of political sabotage and said he hoped the EU would find a way around this.