The 18th round of sanctions against Russia plunges Europe into an energy dead end.

According to TASS on July 19, Leonid Slutsky, head of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, commented on the European Union's (EU) adoption of the 18th package of sanctions against Russia, stating that the sanctions are causing discomfort for Europe itself and pushing member states into an energy dead end.

"The European Union has approved the 18th package of sanctions against Russia, bringing the total number of sanctions to 30,000. Completely useless. Introducing new sanctions is a dead end. They are all exploding in Europe, pushing the continent's countries into an energy gridlock. At the same time, Russia is confidently resisting military, financial, and economic pressure from the West," wrote Leonid Slutsky, head of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs, on his Telegram channel.

According to the politician, the new sanctions will not force Russia to betray national interests or abandon the goals set out in the special military operation to protect its borders.

"The numbers speak for themselves: Last year, GDP in Russia grew by 4.3%, while in the Eurozone it only increased by 0.7%," Slutsky pointed out.

The politician also noted that the Russian Foreign Ministry would take countermeasures against the 18th package of sanctions. According to him, Berlin, London, and Paris have destroyed their countries' economic prosperity with the hands of "false elites," forcing the people to pay the price for the war in Ukraine.

Earlier, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told TASS that, after analyzing the EU's 18th package of sanctions, Russia would not rule out countermeasures.

The Vice Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the "Trusted Partners" Association believes that European politicians began making decisions based on the need to maintain their reputation. "If they wanted to do something truly effective, they would have imposed a complete ban several years ago. But everyone understands that if Russia completely refused to supply, the world market would collapse. Retail prices in fuel-importing countries would skyrocket, which would cause significant social unrest," he told TASS.

The maximum that Europeans would go to address the current reduction in Russia's oil price ceiling is to further redirect Russian oil supplies to other countries' markets and possibly offer slightly larger discounts to friendly buyers.