EC chief urges int’l community to support sanctions on Russia for long period

New Delhi: To stop Russian aggression in Ukraine, the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von Der Leyen, on Monday urged the international community to support efforts for lasting peace through imposition of sanctions on Russia for long period.

During the Raisina Dialogue here, Leyen said what happens in Ukraine will have an impact on the Indo- Pacific.

“In many ways, it already has. We, therefore, want a targeted vision for a free, resilient, prosperous, and rules-based Indo-Pacific region,” she said.

She said that images coming from Ukraine have shocked the whole world.

“Two weeks ago, I visited Bucha, the suburb of Kiev which was devastated by Russian troops. I saw with my own eyes the bodies lined up on the ground. I saw the mass graves. I listened to the survivors of atrocious crimes. The crimes the soldiers committed,” she said.

She also saw the scars of bombed schools, residences, houses and hospitals.

“These are severe violations of international law… Killing innocent civilians, redrawing borders by force, subjugating the world of a free people. This goes against the core principal enshrined in the UN charter,” she said.

Leyen further pointed out that in Europe, they see the Russian aggression as a direct threat to security.

“We will make sure that the unprovoked and unjustified aggression against Ukraine will be a strategic failure. This is why we are doing all we can to help Ukraine fight for its freedom,” she said.

She said that this is the reason why we need imposed massive short and effective sanctions.

“Sanctions are not standalone solutions. We have designed the sanctions in a way so that they sustain over a long period of time. We urge all the members of the international community to support our efforts for lasting peace,” she said.

She further stated that if considered, what it means for Europe and Asia is that Russia and China have forged seemingly unrestrained pact and have declared that the friendship between them have no limit.

“There are no forbidden areas of cooperation. This was in February this year and then invasion of Ukraine followed,” she said.

Earlier in the day, Leyen met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed a wide range of regional and global issues and agreed to establish an EU-India Trade and Technology Council.

“We reviewed the full range of India-EU ties, including economic and cultural linkages,” Modi said.

After the meeting, Leyen said that strengthening the EU and India partnership is a key priority for this decade.

“We will step up cooperation in trade, technology and security,” she said.

Leyen arrived in India for a two-day official visit on Sunday to strengthen India-EU strategic partnership. This is her first visit to India as the President of the European Commission.