EU will step up sanctions pressure on Russia following sabotage at Leipzig Airport, - von der Leyen
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has stated that the EU will step up sanctions against Russia in response to the sabotage at Leipzig Airport.
She made these remarks ahead of her meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Wednesday, 2 September, in Brussels, as quoted by DW, reports Censor.NET.
Russian sabotage in Germany
According to the President of the European Commission, the drone incident at Leipzig Airport was an attack involving military-grade equipment, carried out by operatives of the Russian security services on EU territory.
"We will not tolerate this. We stand in full solidarity with Germany. And if the aim of (Russia, – ed.) was to make us think twice before supporting Ukraine, I can say that this has only strengthened our resolve," von der Leyen said.
Increased sanctions pressure
She promised that the EU would "not merely maintain pressure on Russia", but would step it up "until Russia stops killing innocent children, men and women in Ukraine".
Von der Leyen emphasised that the sabotage in Leipzig "marks a new escalation within the European Union, directly linked to Russia" and is "part of a broader pattern of increasingly dangerous incidents".
The President of the European Commission gave assurances that the European Union would counter such attacks from Moscow, "regardless of whether they take place within or outside our Union", and is prepared to respond with sanctions to hostile actions "as soon as it is established that Russia is behind them".
Furthermore, she promised that "every loophole that Russia uses" to circumvent sanctions would be closed. Ms von der Leyen also stated that new sanctions against Russia were being discussed during an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Ireland.
Yesterday, Germany’s Minister of the Interior, Alexander Dobrindt, stated that Russia was responsible for the incident involving a drone carrying explosives near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Leipzig/Halle Airport last month.
- It was previously reported that a drone was discovered near a Ukrainian aircraft at the airport on the night of Tuesday 4 August. It was equipped with explosives and a detonator. According to Die Zeit, the aircraft in question is an Antonov, which is believed to belong to the Ukrainian Air Force.
- NATO has confirmed that it is aware of this incident. The German police deployed a bomb-disposal robot to retrieve the drone.
- Subsequently, German media reported that
there was ammunition on board the Ukrainian cargo aircraft, next to which a drone containing explosives had been found at Leipzig/Halle Airport.
- US intelligence believes that the drone carrying explosives, which was discovered at Leipzig-Halle Airport in Germany, probably belongs to the Russian Federation.
- The day before, the media reported that the German government plans to announce in the near future that Russia is behind the incident involving a drone laden with explosives found at Leipzig Airport.
- Furthermore, Berlin intends to announce ‘far-reaching measures’ against Russia, whilst the EU will impose new sanctions.
