Brussels, 07/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - On 6 May, High Representative Catherine Ashton and the US Secretary of State John Kerry said that they were prepared to toughen sanctions against Russia, particularly if the presidential elections in Ukraine on 25 May are disrupted. At a press conference with Ashton, Kerry said, if Russian elements continue to sabotage the democratic process and prevent the holding of free and fair elections on 25 May, “we are prepared to apply further sanctions” and “we” included both Europe and the US. He added that “the EU is strongly committed to doing this”. He pointed out that the US President and German Chancellor Angela Merkel had clearly announced on 2 May that, if there was interference or continued meddling in the election and electoral process, there would be sanctions and that “this time this would begin to affect sectors of the economy”.
Kerry also criticised the “false and artificial” referendum on the declaration of independence by the self-proclaimed Republic of Donetsk, planned for 11 May. He said that “we categorically reject this illegal effort to further divide Ukraine” continuation of which would make it more difficult to try to de-escalate the situation. On 7 May, the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, also called on “representatives from south eastern Ukraine to postpone the referendum planned for 11 May, so that the conditions needed for dialogue could be created”.
Kerry in London next week
Kerry will visit London in the week of 12-18 May to meet his European counterparts “to discuss the next appropriate steps” and he stated that they would not simply twiddle their thumbs while Russian elements fanned the flames of instability instead of meeting the commitments that they made in the agreement reached in Geneva.
The high representative again emphasised that other measures that destabilise the situation in Ukraine would have further and significant ramifications for relations in a wide range of areas. She underlined the importance of the elections on 25 May and said that the EU and US would be focusing on the elections and the importance of free and fair presidential elections. She also added that this was a very important stage in the stabilisation of Ukraine. It was about and democracy, she said, and provided an opportunity for a legitimate and broad debate on Ukraine's future.
During a press briefing at the end of the EU-Japan summit, the president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, said that, in terms of stability, “the immediate aim (was) to enable the organisation of free and fair presidential elections”. He added that “we are ready to make the required decisions, if necessary”. Like Ashton's spokesperson the day before, Van Rompuy stated that the EU “was open to the idea of holding a second Geneva conference” and that it was going to work with its colleagues to see if this was possible.
In their joint declaration, the EU and Japan again called for concrete measures to be taken “in support of the Geneva agreement and to refrain from any action that was likely to further destabilise Ukraine”. In this declaration they also stated that “we underline the fact that the door remains open to a diplomatic resolution of this crisis, whilst being prepared to take further measures if necessary, in compliance with the appropriate G-7 declarations, in an effort to tackle new developments”. (CG)