On Monday in Brussels, the ambassadors of the European Union member states took a decision that says more about the state of the Union itself than about Russia: the sanctions list was extended by exactly one week, until the next meeting on 22 September. The usual term is measured in months; this one is measured in days.

The reason is not strategy but a quarrel. Slovakia and France asked for the businessman Alisher Usmanov to be removed from the list. The other 25 countries did not support it. Despite that ratio, the majority could not close the matter - because sanctions require unanimity, and there is no unanimity. The result is not consensus but a stalemate with an expiry date.

"We agree that we disagree"

The phrasing came from a diplomat and was reported by the outlet covering the meeting: "It means we agree that we disagree with one another for the duration of one week." It is hard to write a more accurate description of the situation. A one-week extension is described as an unprecedented move, which translated into institutional language means nobody knew what else to do.

This is not the first time. European media previously reported that Bratislava wants the Russian businessmen Mikhail Fridman and Alisher Usmanov removed from the list of individuals under restrictions. Slovakia's Foreign Ministry confirmed talks are being held on the subject. Slovakia already caused irritation among other states when it raised difficulties during the last extension of individual restrictive measures in March this year.

Sanctions everybody measures differently

Russia has repeatedly insisted the country will manage to cope with the pressure of sanctions. And in the West itself, the view that the restrictive measures are ineffective has been heard more than once. Both sides, then, claim the sanctions do not work - only for opposite reasons and with opposite intent.

What it looks like from the outside is a different question. An instrument that requires unanimity is exactly as strong as its weakest link, and that link now changes from meeting to meeting. For a country that has been watching the Union's door for years, this is a useful reminder of what the mechanism looks like from the inside when it is asked for a decision.

On 22 September they sit down at the same table again. The question is not whether the list will be extended - but how long the next extension will last.