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Ukraine considers that Russia should be sanctioned immediately
At a time when Western allies are discussing and negotiating agreements to define a set of forceful sanctions against Russia, in the case that it attacks Ukraine, Kiev authorities criticize the United States and the European Union, for not having agreed on new sanctions.
The Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, has said that these sanctions would not be preventive because of the current threat, but rather because they violated the international law of the Minsk peace agreements in 2014 and 2015.
In the press conference, together with Spanish Foreign Minister José Albares, Kuleba indicated that measures could have been applied to show determination in case Russia carries out an attack.
On the other hand, Albares assured that no weapons would be sent to Ukraine by Spain.
Currently, hundreds of thousands of Russian troops are massed on the Ukraine border, warships have been deployed in the Black Sea, and this week the second period of joint maneuvers by Russian and Minsk troops in Belarus began.
Albares insisted that in order to achieve a de-escalation, which he still considers possible, the efforts made must be focused on a dialogue where peace and the sovereignty of Ukraine prevail.
The Spanish minister, during his visit to Kiev, also met with President Volodimir Zelenski and Denys Shmyhal, Prime Minister of the nation.
Political incursion of Spain
Albares's trip is part of an arduous political and diplomatic incursion around Ukraine in recent days, where several leaders and senior officials of the European Union and NATO have sought to highlight support for Ukraine in the face of a possible Russian attack.
This intention of Albares has been appreciated by Kuleba who has defined him as one of the main promoters of the cessation of the Russian threat against Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government again insisted that the worst scenario, which is a new military attack, will not happen now.
Albares stressed that no one in Europe is currently preparing to face a war. In addition, he assured that they cannot declare that the conflict is inevitable because it can be avoided, assuring that the diplomatic route is currently prevailing.
Russia has remarked that it only recognizes the United States as the sole mediator of the crisis.
On Tuesday, at the meeting between French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Russian president assured that he would only reach agreements with the United States.
After that, Albares assured that the unity is strengthened, with respect to the allies, and that European issues will not be discussed without the European Union.
Kuleba has considered that the set of sanctions that his allies in the West are developing, which they plan to decree at the time Russia attacks, is an effective measure to deter.
However, Ukraine believes that the West could have done more and done it some time ago.
They consider that they should have taken action against the delivery of almost a million Russian passports to people from Ukraine in the Donetsk and Lugansk territories.
Belgium and the United States years ago had sanctioned Russia for annexing Crimea to Russia, after a referendum considered irrational by the international community.
According to statements, Ukraine considers that the granting of citizenship to citizens in Donbass regions violates the Minsk agreements and reveals how Moscow intends to seize these two territories to control them politically and economically.
On the other hand, Russia has demanded in international summits that the agreements that were signed in Kiev seven years ago under the supervision of Germany and France be enforced.
Russian military maneuvers
This week Russia has openly shown the increase of its army in Belarus, for this reason, Kiev continues to demand support from its allies in defense material. Weeks ago, the United States and the United Kingdom would have sent weapons and money to Ukraine.
However, Albares assures that Spain has no plans to send weapons to Ukraine, since they consider that "it is time to prioritize diplomatic channels and not military ones."
On the other hand, Kuleba insisted that the Russian threat concerns not only Ukraine but the whole of Europe; since he considers that Russia wants to take revenge for losing the Cold War.
The minister insists that it is about defending the architecture and security of Europe. He considers that the outcome of how the European community deals with this crisis depends on the future of the continent.
