EU admits real goal of Russia sanctions is not to stop war in Ukraine
The sanctions imposed by the European Union (EU) on Russia are not intended to stop the war in Ukraine but to destroy the Russian economy, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said on July 18.
"EU sanctions will not stop military action in Ukraine but will create many problems for the Russian economy," said Mr. Borrell, adding that the EU must not "get tired of sanctions." The EU official said that Russia is relying on "the fatigue of democracies implementing sanctions" and assessed that maintaining this "is not easy but we must continue to put pressure on the Russian economy. Europe must not abandon this policy."
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Mr Borrell's comments came in response to comments by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban that,Russia's embargo policy is a "miscalculation"more harmful to EU countries than Moscow.
Mr Borrell said that sanctions could not be blamed because oil prices were now at the same level as in February. He also announced that the EU planned to ban Russian gold later this week in a mini-sanctions package to improve the effectiveness of current sanctions.
The ban will "directly and indirectly affect the sale or transport of Russian gold, which is Russia's most important export after energy," The Guardian reported. While the EU has officially pledged to support Ukraine with 9 billion euros in an emergency loan plan, the Wall Street Journal said that the remaining amount has not yet been provided. Meanwhile, the budget for supporting Ukraine's weapons is limited to only 5.7 billion euros until 2027./.
