Coreper (Committee of Permanent Representatives)
Coreper (Committee of Permanent Representatives) is a preparatory body of the Council of the European Union, composed of the ambassadors or permanent representatives of the EU member states. It works to reconcile member states' positions ahead of meetings of the Council of the EU at ministerial level and at European Council summits. Coreper's remit covers the full range of EU policies, including foreign affairs, sanctions and budgetary matters.
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EU Coreper fails to extend Russia sanctions as Slovakia and France push to delist oligarchs
EU ambassadors meeting on 21 September failed to reach consensus on extending the bloc's individual sanctions regime against Russia, which covers roughly 3,000 individuals and entities including Vladimir Putin. Slovakia and France insisted on delisting sanctioned oligarchs Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman; a compromise deal that would have extended the regime for 36 months in exchange for delisting them collapsed after Latvia blocked it. Coreper scheduled a further meeting for the morning of 22 September, hours before the midnight deadline at which the entire regime would lapse without unanimous renewal. Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha publicly called any delisting unacceptable and a wrong signal to Moscow.