Brussels 'Playing Into Kiev’s Hands' by Extending Anti-Russian Sanctions

The extension of the anti-Russian sanctions will only strengthen the Ukrainian government in its aggression against the eastern regions of the country. Kiev will continue its destructive policy, until the EU stops support of the current Ukrainian authorities, German newspaper Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten (DWN) wrote.

If the West continues to support the Kiev government, it will be impossible to resolve the situation in Ukraine, the newspaper reported.

According to DWN, the extension of anti-Russian sanctions will only strengthen the Ukrainian government in its aggressive policy. The more Kiev feels the support of the West, the more it will adhere to its military rhetoric, the article said.

The author argued that Moscow had undertaken some constructive steps and showed that it is open to dialogue. However, the Ukrainian government continues to depict Russia as an aggressor and is further increasing its military budget at the expense of European taxpayers, DWN wrote.

According to the newspaper, the Kiev government signed the Minsk Agreement only because of the demoralized state of its army and the pressure of European states. Now Ukraine is not very much concerned about respecting the agreement provisions.

For instance, the Kiev government has not taken any measures to resolve situation with the blackout of Crimea and counteract the violations at the right time, the article said.

Nevertheless, On Friday, the EU made a decision to extend anti-Russian sanctions for another six months. The measure was adopted by the EU Council on Monday despite the fact that a number of European countries opposed this move amid negative impact of the sanctions on their economies.