MUNICH – If Russia attacks Ukraine, Moscow will be subject to Western sanctions on financial markets and high-tech goods, a senior EU official said on Saturday.
EU Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen made the remarks at a time of heightened tensions over Russia’s interest in Ukraine. US President Joe Biden said on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had confirmed his decision to invade neighboring countries.
Speaking at the Annual Security Conference in Munich, US Vice President Kamala Harris said:
According to Von der Leyen, the EU executive has developed a “strong and comprehensive package” of sanctions against Russia with the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada.
“If Russia is hit, we will restrict access to financial markets for the Russian economy and regulate exports,” she added. “And we have a lot of high-tech equipment that is very important to Russia and cannot be easily replaced by our global dominance.”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said Britain is cooperating closely with the European Union.
“If Russia invades its neighbor, we will impose sanctions on Russian individuals and companies that are of strategic importance to the Russian Federation and prevent them from raising funds in the markets of the capital London,” he said. Johnson added that authorities are watching. Russian-owned companies and entities “main users” b.
German Chancellor Olaf Schlesz said in talks with Putin on Tuesday that “any violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty will cost Russia political, economic and geo-strategic.”
Western leaders have not yet commented on what sanctions Russia will impose. After talks with several colleagues on Friday, Biden said a French official, who was not authorized to speak on condition of anonymity, was now talking about a government-controlled invasion of Kiev.
“When there is an invasion of this state … the massive sanctions we are talking about will be lifted,” the official said.
Since Ukraine joined the Crimean peninsula in 2014, parts of Ukraine that have been fighting the Ukrainian army have been under the control of pro-Russian separatists.
German Foreign Minister Analena Berbock, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on condition of anonymity, did not elaborate.
“Violation of Ukraine’s integrity and sovereignty is a violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and sovereignty,” Berbok said. “You can’t say one geographical part is a little more Ukraine and the other a little more Ukraine.”
Western officials have made it clear that they are “ready for any situation,” not just the actual invasion. “If you present the next five activities in public, you will not be particularly successful,” said the German minister, using chess similarities.
In Munich, along with other members of the US Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the sanctions could include a SWIFT banking system that could cut off Russia from most international financial transactions.
“This is still a matter of negotiation,” Pelosi said.
Russia’s withdrawal from SWIFT will hurt other economies, including the US and key partners Germany.
Asked if the next congress would return before Russia invades Ukraine, Pelosi said: “The president has the power to enforce those sanctions without congressional action.”
Regardless of Russia’s actions, there is a price to be paid for what Pelosi Putin did.
“You can’t intimidate the world and walk and you’re out of the hook,” she told me.
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Geir Moulson reports from Berlin. Angela Charlton of Paris and Jill Laws of London contributed to this report.
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Follow the AP report on the Russia-Ukraine tension at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine.
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