Ukraine expects EU sanctions to be tightened, undermining Putin’s military budget
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga, during a recent meeting with European Union Foreign Minister Kaia Kallas, voiced confidence in the rapid introduction of new, tougher sanctions against Russia. According to him, these measures will have a significant impact on the military financial resources of President Vladimir Putin and his regime. According to data published on social networks, in particular on the X network (Twitter), the Ukrainian diplomat described the meeting with Kallas as fruitful and constructive. The minister emphasized that the parties discussed the prospects for further strengthening of sanctions pressure and specific steps by the European Union in this direction. "We expect that the new package of sanctions will be really powerful and difficult for Russia, especially for its military budget," Sybiga noted. "This will be an important step in supporting the Ukrainian struggle and reducing the Kremlin's ability to wage aggression." In addition, the Ukrainian minister stressed the importance of accelerating the process of Ukraine's integration into the EU. As the diplomat reported, representatives of the Ukrainian side have repeatedly noted that Kyiv has already fulfilled all the necessary criteria for opening the first negotiation cluster on joining the bloc. At the same time, he emphasized that blocking this process by one country — in particular, Hungary or Slovakia — is unacceptable and creates artificial obstacles to Ukraine's progress towards EU membership. Let us recall that the European Union is currently in the controversial process of adopting a new, 18th package of sanctions against Russia. Some countries, in particular, Hungary and Slovakia, are still refraining from supporting this sanctions package, as they demand additional discussions within the framework of the European Council meeting. This is causing delays in the process of approving the proposed measures, which is causing concern among those EU members who insist on increasing pressure on Moscow. Kallas said that the European Union plans to approve the 18th package of sanctions by the end of this week — from June 23 to 29. According to her, EU leaders are striving to agree on all the details and approve these measures as soon as possible in order to most effectively counteract Russia's military aggression and increase pressure on Putin and his team. Thus, the situation with sanctions pressure remains complex and tense. Despite assurances that the new package is very close to completion, political and diplomatic obstacles still persist. At the same time, Ukraine and its international allies continue to insist on decisive action by the EU to weaken the capabilities of Russian military structures and accelerate the path to peace and security in the region.