The EU swears more sanctions against Moscow while Biden and Putin talk about Ukraine

The EU has vowed to increase existing sanctions against Russia if they “continue to perpetuate violence” in Ukraine while Joe Biden seeks to prevent Vladimir Putin from plotting to overthrow the country.

Ursula von der Leyen, head of the EU committee, told EU ambassadors on Tuesday that the blocyo “would respond appropriately to any violence.

“We like to do positive things with Moscow,” he said. “But it depends on them. And right now it is Russia’s deliberate elections and actions that continue to undermine security in Europe. “

The comments came shortly after a video of the match between Biden and Putin, which lasted more than two hours. The US president has now informed the leaders of France, Germany, Italy and the UK, the White House said.

Biden took part in talks Monday to sign a joint agreement on the ban. In a statement to Putin, he is expected to explain in detail the ways in which Russia could “destroy the economy” if the country were to attack Ukraine, a US official said. The US President should also speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The EU sanctions in question are focused on ways to improve Russia’s economy and economy, Western diplomats have told the Financial Times. European officials say the US is pushing for ways that prevent Russia from converting the ruble into dollars and hitting the economic interests of the Russian oligarchs.

Western officials who briefly commented on the views in Washington said the ban on the conversion of the ruble into a western currency would make selling Russian oil “extremely difficult”. He says sanctions will “continue” beyond the retaliation of whites after Russia invaded Crimea in 2014.

The US believes that Putin is mobilizing troops, weapons and armor that are needed to increase the number of troops by the beginning of next year, but it is unclear whether the Russian leader has chosen to do so.

The new insurgency could also spark an escalating conflict in the Donbas, a region in eastern Ukraine on the Russian border, which has killed more than 14,000 people since its inception in 2014.

Biden will also respond to technical sanctions, cyber attacks and the Iranian nuclear program during talks with Putin, which the Kremlin said was expected to be “long-term”.

The Biden chief said Monday that Washington believes “we have a development agenda that could include the economic crisis in Europe and the US that could seriously hurt Russia’s economy if they choose to continue”.

U.S. intelligence on Russian military plans shared with European countries in recent weeks “sparked interest” in the new sanctions, the EU chief added.

Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014 following the Kyiv riots. Since then the Kremlin has supported separatist groups in the Donbas region, although it refuses to take part in the war.

The Minsk Accords, a Franco-German peace treaty of 2015 that disrupted much of the war, stemmed from Russia and Ukraine’s refusal to force various aspects of the treaty. Moscow says it does not see any reason to negotiate with Ukraine, which describes it as a Western puppet country controlled by the US.

Kremlin officials have rejected the plan to seize Ukraine and say Moscow only wants to prevent the people of the Ukrainian government and the military from taking action to regain control of what is now controlled by separatists in the Donbas.

In the meantime, Putin wants to reaffirm Western sanctions on Russia’s “red lines”, which he described as “Nato” would not allow Ukraine to block or send troops and weapons into the country.

Following Moscow’s occupation of the Crimea, the US and the EU imposed travel bans and suspensions of the Russian government and security officials, as well as others close to Putin who may have been involved in the crackdown.

The US soon imposed a ban on trading with other Russian companies and their supervisors. Western nations have also banned lending related to energy and infrastructure as well as project funding to Crimea or the island’s connected institutions.