Ukraine urges more sanctions on Russia

UKRAINE urged the EU yesterday to impose more sanctions on Moscow, as some of the bloc’s top officials visited Kyiv in a show of solidarity that offered no quick path to membership during Russia’s invasion.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen led a delegation of more than a dozen officials that promised military, financial and political aid before the first anniversary of the February 24 invasion.

Von der Leyen met with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy after her arrival, and the two leaders will hold a summit today with Charles Michel, chairperson of the EU’s 27 national leaders.

The West stepped up pledges to deliver more arms to Ukraine in January. But, unwilling to admit a country at war, the EU is set to dash Ukraine’s hopes of being swiftly allowed membership, underlining the need for more anti-corruption measures.

“Today, we are proposing to Ukraine to join key European programmes. This will give Ukraine benefits close to those of membership in many areas,” von der Leyen said.

The EU announced a doubling of the number of Ukrainian troops to be trained by the EU to 30000 this year and promised funding for demining areas recaptured by Ukraine.

Meanwhile, yesterday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the West of wanting to inflict a lasting defeat against Moscow, “the kind of defeat that for decades, for many decades, Russia cannot restore its economy,” Lavrov said. |