Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, said the bloc was ready for a protracted crisis in Ukraine and would support Kyiv for as long as it takes.
“Unity within the European Union and across the Atlantic is strong. The European Union is ready” for a prolonged crisis and “will continue to support Ukraine with political, economic, military and humanitarian support, however long it takes,” Billstrom told a news conference on Wednesday.
He added that the European Union will continue to work to impose more sanctions on Moscow because of the crisis in Ukraine, after the bloc of 27 countries approved nine packages of sanctions on Russia since the start of the crisis in February 2022.
“Sanctions are the best tool the European Union has to help Ukraine,” said Billstrom.
Officials said the new sanctions could include further asset freezes, travel bans on Russian personalities and further restrictions on the sale of EU goods that could be used for military purposes to Russia.
“The EU is ready to continue strengthening sanctions, to ensure the effective and tight implementation of the sanctions,” Billstrom added.
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