EU moves to sanction Georgian oil terminal in Russia package
European Union ambassadors are meeting this week to finalize sanctions against the Kulevi oil terminal in Georgia as part of the bloc’s 20th sanctions package against Russia, in what would mark the first time Brussels targets a port in a country officially seeking EU membership.
The proposed measures reflect mounting tensions between the EU and Tbilisi, as Georgia deepens economic ties with Moscow while facing criticism over democratic backsliding under the ruling Georgian Dream party.
Drafted jointly by the European External Action Service and the European Commission and presented to member states on February 9, the sanctions would prohibit EU companies and individuals from conducting transactions with the Kulevi terminal on Georgia’s Black Sea coast. The package also targets Indonesia’s Karimun port, making it the first time the EU directly sanctions ports in third countries to enforce its embargoes against Russia.
According to a European Commission draft seen by Reuters, the Kulevi terminal received Russian oil imports via vessels employing irregular and high risk shipping practices. The facility, operated by Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR, has an annual transit capacity of up to 10 million tons of petroleum products.
The sanctions package requires unanimous approval from all 27 EU member states. Diplomats are aiming for adoption by February 24, the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine. EU ambassadors are scheduled to meet on February 18 and 20 to finalize the text ahead of a Foreign Affairs Council meeting on February 23.
The move comes amid a sharp increase in Russian energy shipments to Georgia. Official Georgian statistics show crude oil imports from Russia surged twenty one fold in 2025, with the country purchasing about 225,300 tons valued at nearly $96 million, compared with just 10.5 tons worth $5.8 million in 2024. Imports in 2025 alone exceeded those of all previous years combined.
Major deliveries began in October 2025, when Russian company RussNeft shipped its first cargo to the newly operational Kulevi refinery run by Georgian firm Black Sea Petroleum. Announced in late 2024, the refinery is designed to process 1.2 million tons of crude per year initially, with plans to scale up to 4 million tons by 2028.
Transparency International Georgia has raised concerns that the refinery could allow Russian crude to be processed or relabeled as Georgian before export, potentially creating a pathway to circumvent sanctions.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze responded to the proposed sanctions by saying Tbilisi is prepared to provide detailed information to the European Commission and insisting that the government does not believe any activity at Kulevi violates sanctions policy.
The measures add to broader strains in EU Georgia relations. Brussels has frozen Georgia’s accession process and suspended financial assistance after the Georgian Dream government adopted a controversial foreign influence law, curtailed civil society activity and paused accession negotiations in late 2024. Several EU member states, including the Baltic countries, have imposed their own sanctions on Georgian officials over concerns about democratic decline.
An Azerbaijani energy sector source told haqqin.az that the inclusion of Kulevi in the new EU sanctions package serves as a signal to Tbilisi to reconsider its reliance on Russian oil.
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