Slowly but surely? Assessing EU actorness in energy sanctions against Russia

The European Union (EU) has responded to the Russian invasion of Ukraine (2022 – ongoing) with several packages of sanctions. Of those packages, only three – rather late and limited in scope – contain measures on energy. By focusing on the negotiation and adoption of energy-related restrictive measures, this article aims to assess the EU actorness in the international arena. It argues that the variety of preferences across the member states impact on the ability of the EU to impose sanctions against Russia and, in turn, on its role as an actor beyond its borders. Tracing the process of the negotiations of the energy-related restrictive measures, the article highlights the impact of member states preferences on sanctions and argues that those preferences can be explained by a variety of factors, notably: i) energy sources targeted, ii) levels of energy dependence from Russia, iii) geographical features and iv) commercial interests of the member states.