BERLIN - German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she supports the European Union's efforts to accelerate the introduction of new restrictive measures on Russian individuals and companies in connection with Russia's policy against Ukraine, Merkel's spokesman George Streiter said.
“The German Chancellor believes that the [EU’s] decision on the tougher sanctions is necessary,” he said at a briefing on July 23.
“The recent statements we’ve heard from Moscow do not indicate the Kremlin’s interest in providing a comprehensive explanation of the circumstances of the Malaysian plane crash,” he said.
As was reported earlier, the EU Foreign Ministers have recently agreed to speed up the elaboration of new restrictive measures against Russia in connection with the situation in Ukraine.
“Today we’ve decided to accelerate the preparation of targeted measures agreed at the Special meeting of the European Council on July 16, in particular to establish immediately a [sanction] list of entities and persons, including from the Russian Federation, to be listed under the enhanced criteria adopted by the Council on July 18,” EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton said.
