In addition, he considers that the course to follow is to continue the rounds of sanctions against the Russian economy and guarantee support for Ukraine.
The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, has urged the international community to “take seriously” the nuclear threats of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and has warned that the war in Ukraine has entered a dangerous phase.
Borrell has echoed Putin’s words earlier in the week when he announced that Moscow had “several weapons of destruction” and that he was not lying when he said that Russia “would use all the means at its disposal.”
“When people say it’s not a bluff, you have to take it seriously,” said the highest representative of European diplomacy in an interview for the British BBC in which he warned that Russia’s latest moves have made the war enter a “dangerous” stage.
Along with the warnings about the possible use of nuclear weapons, Putin announced at the beginning of the week a “partial mobilization” of the population, while the Russian Ministry of Defense indicated the deployment of 300,000 reservists in Ukraine.
In this context, Borrell considers that the Russian leader has faced several defeats on the battlefield in recent weeks, although he has recognized that Putin’s reaction to these setbacks “has been very bad”, since he has not done more to escalate tensions.
So, although he agrees with the experts’ analysis that Russia is now on the defensive, he considers that it is urgent to reach a “diplomatic solution (…) that preserves the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”, in order not to obtain a short-term, but lasting peace.
On a more personal level, the person in charge of European diplomacy has recognized that the war in Ukraine dominates today all spheres, including his personal one, since, he says, from relatives to international politicians they ask him when the conflict will end.
However, and although it is difficult to find an adequate response, Borrell believes that the course to follow is to continue the rounds of sanctions against the Russian economy and guarantee support for Ukraine to defend its territory and sovereignty.
Finally, Borrell has acknowledged that all the leaders who have spoken with Putin about the war have obtained as a response that Russia has “military objectives” and that, until it achieves them, “the war will continue”. “This is a really worrying direction, but we have to continue to support Ukraine,” he concluded.
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