Germany opposes imposing more economic sanctions on Russia

According to a VNA correspondent in Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel on March 26 affirmed that the crisis in Ukraine needs to be resolved through political measures instead of imposing further economic sanctions on Russia.

Responding to a reporter's question about Germany's current policy toward Russia, Chancellor Merkel stated that the European Union (EU) has applied level 2 sanctions against Russia, including travel restrictions, visa restrictions, and account freezes for many officials.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel. (Source: THX/TTXVN)

However, the EU has not yet moved to the third level of economic sanctions, except for products in Crimea. Ms Merkel expressed hope that further sanctions could be avoided.

According to Chancellor Merkel, economic contacts are still ongoing and Berlin wants to reduce tensions instead of escalating the current conflict. However, the German Chancellor also warned that in case of further violations of international agreements, Europe will be ready to respond firmly to Russia together with the US.

The above statement by Chancellor Merkel was made after on the same day, Chairman of German Siemens Corporation Joe Kaeser met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

At the meeting, Mr. Kaeser affirmed to the Russian leader that Siemens will continue to expand long-term investments in Russia, where Siemens has established business relations for 160 years.

Regarding threats of economic sanctions against Russia, many German economic experts believe that level three sanctions against Russia will have a negative impact on the German economy.

German-Russian trade turnover in 2013 reached 76 billion euros while there are currently about 6,000 German companies investing and cooperating in Russia. The total investment value of German enterprises in Russia has reached 20 billion euros and there are currently about 300,000 jobs in Germany depending on economic relations with Russia./.

According to VNA