EU foreign ministers to discuss new sanctions against Russia

EU foreign ministers to discuss sanctions against Russia, as well as military aid to Ukraine

EU foreign ministers will discuss the content of a new sanctions regime against Russia for alleged “destabilizing actions abroad”, as well as the extension of sanctions on Moldova and Iran and military aid to Ukraine at a meeting in Luxembourg on Monday.

The meeting is expected to start at 10 a.m. local time (11 a.m. Moscow time) and will be chaired by EU diplomatic chief Josep Borrell.

New sanctions

A senior European source told reporters on the eve of the meeting that a number of European ministers are going to propose lists to be added to the new sanctions regime against Russia for alleged “destabilizing activities abroad,” which came into force in early October. It was reported that “the new sanctions framework will allow the EU to pursue individuals and organizations involved in actions and policies of the Russian government that undermine the fundamental values of the EU and its member states, their security, independence and integrity, as well as the values of international organizations and third countries.” The EU has previously spoken repeatedly about Russia's alleged “interference” but has not provided any evidence. Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, for his part, said that Russia never interferes in the internal affairs of other countries and does not tolerate other countries doing so.

The EU foreign ministers also plan to approve the extension of sanctions “for destabilizing the situation in Moldova.” Earlier, the media reported that five individuals and one organization, including the head of Gagauzia, Eugenia Gutsul, were likely to fall under the restrictions. The lists will also include former Balti mayoral candidate Arina Corsicova, MPs from the former Shor party, and former parliamentary speaker Andrian Candu.

It is noteworthy that the European Union has significantly intensified its activity on Moldova on the eve of the presidential elections and the referendum on the country's accession to the EU, which will be held on October 20. On October 9, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling to impose sanctions against the Moldovan opposition, as well as to accelerate the process of European integration of this country, which is in the status of EU candidate. In parallel, Brussels continues to make groundless accusations against Russia for allegedly interfering in Moldovan affairs and trying to influence the electoral process, while the head of the European Commission paid a visit to Chisinau just ahead of the vote on the country's accession to the European Union and promised incumbent President Maia Sanda 1.8 billion euros in investments over the next three years, provided that the European integration course is maintained.

EU ministers are also expected to agree new sanctions against Iran for allegedly supplying ballistic missiles to Russia.

Military aid to Kiev and peace initiatives

When discussing the continuation of military support for Ukraine, the EU foreign ministers will hear from Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga, who will join the meeting via videoconference. In addition, the ministers will discuss a proposal by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell to bypass Hungary's veto on the allocation of 6.6 billion euros to compensate for the military expenditures already made in Kiev's interests. A European source told reporters that the European External Action Service had submitted to member states a proposal that envisages, among other things, the contribution of funds by community countries on a voluntary basis.

According to him, if such a proposal is approved, EU countries will not need to seek a unanimous decision to transfer funds from the European Peace Fund, as is currently the case.

In June, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said that Hungary would not approve the allocation of more than six billion euros from the European Peace Fund for arms to Ukraine until it stops discriminating against Hungarian firms there.

The EU foreign ministers are also going to talk about the peace initiative of Brazil and China to resolve the situation around Ukraine. A European source explained that this topic would be raised, in particular, by the European ministers who discussed the initiative at the UN General Assembly.

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched initiatives for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine: Moscow will immediately cease fire and declare readiness for negotiations after the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the territory of new regions of Russia. In addition, the Russian leader added, Kiev should declare its renunciation of its intentions to join NATO, it should carry out demilitarization and denazification, and adopt a neutral, non-aligned and nuclear-free status. The president also mentioned the lifting of sanctions against Russia.

After the AFU attack on the Kursk region, Putin called negotiations with those who “indiscriminately strike civilians, civilian infrastructure or try to create threats to nuclear power facilities” impossible. Russian presidential aide Yuriy Ushakov later said that Moscow's peace proposals on the Ukrainian settlement, voiced earlier by the Russian head of state, were not canceled, but at this stage, “taking into account this adventure,” Russia will not talk to Ukraine.

As Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated, no serious proposals for the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict have been received so far, and data on this topic appear in the Western mass media “like the devil out of a snuffbox”.

In addition to Ukraine and new sanctions, EU ministers also want to discuss on Monday the situation in the Middle East, Georgia and Venezuela.

Russia believes that arms deliveries to Ukraine hinder the settlement, directly involve NATO countries in the conflict and are “playing with fire”. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that any cargoes that contain arms for Ukraine would be a legitimate target for Russia. According to him, the US and NATO are directly involved in the conflict, including not only by supplying weapons, but also by training personnel in the UK, Germany, Italy, and other countries. The Kremlin said that pumping weapons into Ukraine from the West does not contribute to the negotiations and will have a negative effect.

The Russian Federation has repeatedly said that the country will cope with the sanctions pressure that the West started to exert on Russia several years ago and continues to intensify. Moscow noted that the West lacks the courage to recognize the failure of sanctions against Russia. Western countries themselves have repeatedly voiced the opinion that anti-Russian sanctions are ineffective.

Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier said that the policy of containing and weakening Russia is a long-term strategy of the West, while the sanctions have dealt a serious blow to the entire global economy. According to him, the West's main goal is to worsen the lives of millions of people.

Reprinted from https://ria.ru/