You're reading: Wall Street Journal: Merkel issues warning to Russia over its actions in Ukraine

BERLIN — German Chancellor Angela Merkel doubled down on her uncharacteristically sharp warnings to Russia Thursday, threatening in a speech in parliament that the Kremlin's actions in Ukraine could "massively" damage Russia. 

Merkel displayed resolve in pressing for further economic sanctions against Russia if it didn’t change course in Ukraine, where the majority-ethnic-Russian region of Crimea is scheduled to hold a referendum on Sunday to join Russia in a move the West has decried as illegal. She said that the European Union was ready to impose sanctions on Russia, such as visa bans and asset freezes, if Moscow doesn’t agree to setting up a “contact group” to start negotiations with Kiev. And if Russia continued to seek to destabilize Ukraine, the West was ready to impose further-reaching economic sanctions, she said. 

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