Von der Leyen: EU Prepared a “Solid” Package of Sanctions if Russia Invades Ukraine

Part of the package is the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline, the head of the European Commission said The European Union has prepared a “solid and comprehensive” package of sanctions against Moscow in the event of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said. Russia has concentrated about 100,000 troops near the borders of Ukraine, which the West suspects is a prelude to an invasion. At the same time, Moscow demands security guarantees, including a promise that Kiev will never be accepted into NATO. “We have prepared a solid and comprehensive package of financial and economic sanctions,” von der Leyen said in an interview with the German newspaper Handeslblatt and the French Les Echos, adding that they include “restrictions on access to foreign capital” and “export control measures, especially with regard to technical goods”. Von der Leyen noted that the controversial Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline is also part of the sanctions package. Whether it will be put into operation depends “on Russia’s behavior”, she said. “People close to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and the oligarchs, of course, can be subjected to a tangible blow,” von der Leyen added. Голос Америки