The EU agreed a fresh round of sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine on Thursday, after complaints from hawkish eastern European leaders that some countries were trying to water them down, Al Arabiya reported.

The bloc's executive arm last week proposed a ninth round of sanctions on Moscow. They included blacklisting “almost 200” individuals and entities, targeting three banks, curbing mining investments and banning more Russian TV channels. The updated sanctions list, presented by the European Commission on December 7 , includes restrictions on four Russian propaganda TV channels , which are planned to be removed from the airwaves of EU countries. The names of the channels have not yet been announced.

In the face of Russian strikes on Ukraine, the EU also looked to impose a ban on supplying drone engines to Russia and Iran, the latter of which has supplied warhead-equipped drones used in Moscow's attacks.

Approval of the package was held up after coastal countries including Belgium and the Netherlands asked for exemptions on previous sanctions targeting Russian fertilizer producers, which Poland and Lithuania said were unacceptable.

Officials said a compromise deal was reached on the sidelines of an EU leaders summit in Brussels and that the sanctions would be formally confirmed on Friday.

“Ambassadors agreed in principle on a sanctions package against Russia as part of the EU's ongoing support for Ukraine,” the EU's Czech presidency tweeted.

Diplomats said that after the wrangling some exemptions for “food security and fertilizers” had been passed as part of the agreement.