Europe must increase pressure on Russia, - Nauseda
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda has called on European countries to step up pressure on Russia due to the lack of signs that it is prepared to end the war against Ukraine.
According to Censor.NET, citing Ukrinform, he made the statement ahead of the EU summit in Brussels.
According to Nausėda, the prospect of a peace agreement remains distant, as Russia seeks to seize as much territory as possible and shows no willingness to compromise. In this regard, he stressed, Europe must intensify its sanctions pressure.
New sanctions against Russian companies
The Lithuanian president expressed regret that the 20th package of sanctions has not yet been adopted and called for the 21st package to be considered. He noted that a number of Russian companies, including Rosatom and Lukoil, have not yet been subject to restrictions.
"You cannot achieve a positive outcome in peace talks if you take a conciliatory approach. You must ramp up the pressure to change Russia's behavior," Nausėda emphasized.
Loan for Ukraine and Hungary's Position
Nauseda also stressed the need to unblock the €90 billion loan for Ukraine, which is needed to purchase weapons and support the economy. At the same time, he acknowledged that it remains difficult to convince Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who is blocking this decision along with the sanctions package.
The Lithuanian president also warned that events in the Middle East could divert attention from the war in Ukraine. He urged that this not be allowed to happen, emphasizing that the current phase of the war is critically important.
What happened before?
- Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán arrived at the EU summit and stated that he would not support any decision regarding aid to Ukraine until the Druzhba oil pipeline is restored.
- It was previously reported that the European Commission is seeking to provide Ukraine with a loan of 90 billion euros, despite opposition from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
- Consequently, efforts are underway to find a way to override his veto, as Ukraine is set to run out of money in March. At the same time, Europeans are reluctant to put pressure on Prime Minister Viktor Orbán during the election campaign.
- Earlier, European Commission President von der Leyen and European Council President Costa sent a letter to Zelenskyy in which they offered Ukraine technical and financial assistance to resume oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia via the Druzhba pipeline.
- Zelenskyy told EU leaders that it will take about a month and a half to restore transit through the Druzhba pipeline following the Russian strikes.
