Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Tuesday 20 April called on the international community to take a firmer stance towards Russia as he said up to 120,000 troops could soon be massed on Ukraine’s borders.
“I am not trying to say we know the date or time when Russia will cross the border or create a new wave of escalation, but we certainly see strategic preparation, military preparation. It is in the hands of Ukraine and all who stands for respect of international law and Ukraine’s sovereignty to demotivate Russia from making further aggressive steps”, he said at a press conference.
To prevent the worst from happening, the Minister therefore called on the international community to “express its support for Ukraine, loud and clear”. “Moscow should hear from every corner (of the world) that Ukraine will not stand alone, that it is not the two sides that are responsible for the escalation” of tensions, he said.
Mr Kuleba estimated that “the cost of preventing further escalation will always be less than the cost of stopping the escalation and mitigating its consequences”.
He said Russia must understand that further escalation would have serious consequences: international isolation and painful economic sanctions.
The previous day, before the Foreign Ministers of the 27 EU Member States, Mr Kuleba had called for additional sectoral sanctions. “Personal sanctions have value and complicate the lives of some people and economic entities, but they do not stop the war”, he explained. “Only painful economic sanctions can make a difference”, he said, arguing that now was the time to send a signal to Russia before it took further decisions.
However, the Minister acknowledged that he had not “sensed a consensual appetite” among EU Ministers on the subject. However, he said that simply launching discussions on new measures would have an impact on Russia, because “it is afraid of economic sanctions”. He also called for a discussion on how to close legal loopholes in existing sanctions, which Moscow exploits.
Mr Kuleba said Ukraine’s partners should also consider how they could help the country defend itself in a worst-case scenario, including by deepening security and defence cooperation.
And while Ukraine does not seek war or an escalation of tensions, despite Russia’s provocations, “it will be ready to defend itself” in the event of an escalation, although the country is doing its utmost to “seek political and diplomatic means to resolve the conflict between Russia and Ukraine”.
According to the Minister, one of the first signs of appeasement would be a recommitment of all parties to the ceasefire. “This would be a sign that at least Russia is ready to talk and not just to strengthen its military capabilities on the border”, he said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)