Issue 4

Dreck's Diary — Issue 4

Aristidis Myrmidon

Aristidis Myrmidon

— 1 min read
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By Sebastian Dreck

The European Commission fined AliExpress €23.5 million for breach of the Digital Services Act in relation to illegal and unsafe products. AliExpress’s response was to challenge the fine in the EU courts, joining X and Temu, who have challenged their own DSA fines. Every fine issued under the Digital Services Act since its entry into force in 2022 is now subject to pending judicial review. The companies have not removed the illegal products. They have removed the fines from their accounts payable.

The United States imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court following the court’s issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli officials. The sanctions expose European banks, technology companies, and logistics firms that do business with the ICC to the risk of being cut off from the US financial system. The EU’s Blocking Statute exists specifically to protect European entities from exactly this kind of extraterritorial pressure — it has been used twice before, against US sanctions on Cuba and Iran. Kaja Kallas said “the six-month period before the measures take effect offers a window for dialogue.” Eight EU member states issued a joint statement of unwavering support. One understands the dialogue to be ongoing.

Russia’s draft budget for 2027 to 2029 projects defence spending of $205 billion in 2027 — up 40 percent from 2026 and 380 percent from 2021. The budget documents note that Russia has exhausted its “politically affordable money pots” and that the financing of this expenditure remains an open question. The war in Ukraine, Russian officials have consistently said, will be concluded by the end of the year. The budget plans for it to continue until at least 2029. One of these positions is a forecast.

The European Union will add a record 1,646 names to its Russia sanctions list, including 77 lawmakers who stood for election in the occupied territories of Ukraine. The list now runs to more than 2,200 individuals and entities. Russia has not indicated that any of them have noticed.

Following a telephone call between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, the United States issued a broad sanctions waiver for the sale, delivery and importation of Russian fuel, effective until April 2027. The Kremlin finances its war effort through energy revenues. Trump said of Putin: “He better damn well stop.” The waiver runs until April 2027.

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