EU diplomats reported on Wednesday that the EU failed to reach an agreement on a fourteenth package of Russian sanctions because Germany continued to be a blocker despite the removal of a clause Berlin considered problematic.

Over the past month, officials from 27 EU member states have been discussing the package. New measures include a Russian LNG ban and a plan that will make EU operators accountable for violations of sanctions by subsidiaries and partners located in third-country countries.

Diplomats and an informed source said that Germany's hesitation stemmed in part from a disagreement within the Foreign Ministry and the Chancellor's Office.

The clause that was removed was an extension of the "No Russia Clause" to subsidiaries in third countries. They said that the clause in article 12G had been removed from a compromise text sent to all member states just before Wednesday's late afternoon meeting of ambassadors.

A draft of a previous version of the package revealed that this clause would have required these subsidiaries to "contractually prevent re-exportation into Russia and reexportation for usage in Russia".

Third countries are circumventing the EU's efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow in anticipation of its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This clause would have tightened up the measures of the EU.

The ambassadors said that they will continue the discussion on Thursday.