Biden in bid to bolster European resolve

US president Joe Biden is calling for the 'strongest possible' package of sanctions, including on energy. Picture: Patrick Semansky/AP

US president Joe Biden arrives in Brussels this morning seeking to bolster European resolve in terms of increasing sanctions against Russia.

President Biden will attend the EU summit for emergency talks with European leaders about the war in Ukraine, carrying with him plans for more sanctions that sources said will include members of the Russian parliament.

US government sources have expressed concern that there is a weakening of resolve among EU countries, and Biden’s mission is to “re-stiffen” that resolve.

European leaders, including Taoiseach Micheál Martin, will gather in Brussels to discuss a fifth wave of sanctions against Russia, but there is strong disagreement about imposing sanctions on Russia’s oil and gas supplies.

Ireland will seek to align itself with Biden in calling for the “strongest possible” package of sanctions, including on energy.

Russian president Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia will seek payment in roubles for gas sales from “unfriendly” countries, sending European gas prices soaring on concerns the move would exacerbate the region’s energy crunch.

European countries' dependence on Russian gas to heat their homes and power their economies has been thrown into the spotlight since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine on February 24 and the subsequent imposition of Western sanctions aimed at isolating Russia economically.

With the financial noose-tightening and the European Union split on whether to sanction Russia's energy sector, Putin hit back with a clear message — if you want our gas, buy our currency.

The Russian rouble briefly leapt to a three-week high past 95 against the dollar and, despite paring some gains, stayed well below 100 after the shock announcement. The currency is down around 20% since the day of the invasion.

Biden and his team have been developing plans to impose sanctions on members of the Duma (Russia's parliament) in retaliation for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, according to two sources familiar with the situation. The sanctions are expected to be announced today.

A White House spokesperson said that "no final decisions have been made about who we will sanction and how many we will sanction".

Biden's trip includes talks in Brussels with Nato and European leaders and a visit to Warsaw for consultations with Polish president Andrzej Duda.

Western leaders have grown increasingly concerned that Mr Putin will use chemical weapons or otherwise escalate tactics four weeks into an invasion where his troops have failed to capture a single major Ukrainian city.

Leaving the White House on Wednesday, Mr Biden said Russia's use of chemical weapons in Ukraine is a risk.

I think it's a real threat," he said.

Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has warned that any use of chemical weapons in Ukraine would be a “red line” issue for Ireland.

He said the international community had to find a way to end the “madness” in Ukraine.

If not, he gave a grim prediction.

Otherwise, we are going to see cities levelled to the ground and we are going to see in Ukraine what we’ve seen in Syria.” 

Speaking at a centenary event for the Irish air corps, Mr Coveney, who is also Minister of Defence, said he did not regret Ireland's decision not to supply lethal military aid to Ukraine, saying Ireland “always had issues with that”, and defended the decision to provide non-lethal aid.

Responding to Mr Biden's fears of Russia using chemical weapons in Ukraine, he said: “Of course, the use of chemical weapons is a red line. How we would respond to the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine, I can’t honestly say.

How the international community would respond to that, how Nato would respond, how the EU would respond to it, remains to be seen, but certainly it wouldn’t go without a significant response.” 

But, he said, he did not want a response that “moves substantially beyond the borders of Ukraine into the rest of Europe”.

The US president will attend an emergency Nato summit, meet with G7 leaders, in addition to his address to the 27 leaders of the European Union at a session of the European Council.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has been cleared to travel home from the US and on to the summit after recovering from Covid-19.

At the summit, which will see Mr Biden attending in a clear sign of unity against Russia, Ireland is set to push for the “strongest possible” range of sanctions including energy supplies, a position supported by the US.