Prime Minister Kaja Kallas says Russia is continuing to attack critical infrastructure and civilians in Ukraine. “In his video address, President Zelensky said that what Ukraine needs more than anything right now is air and missile defence, but in addition to military assistance Ukraine also requires economic and humanitarian aid,” she said. “The EU should be playing an even bigger role in that.”
The Estonian head of government explained that the EU was already providing Ukraine with an additional package of military aid and that it had launched the training of Ukrainian soldiers. “In assisting the country economically, it is crucial that we use frozen Russian assets, of which we have more than 300 billion euros’ worth at our disposal,” she added. “Given the destruction Russia is responsible for and its ongoing terror campaign in targeting civilian infrastructure, we must find ways of using those frozen assets to make Russia pay for the devastation it has caused. The European Commission has been tasked with finding a specific solution in this regard as quickly as possible.”
The heads of state and government in Brussels also discussed the drafting of the next package of sanctions against Russia and the need to hold Russia accountable. “Russia’s crimes, including its crime of aggression, crimes against humanity and possible genocide, must not go unpunished,” Prime Minister Kallas said. “Ukraine has sought our support in this regard, and I have suggested that the European Union could take the lead in setting up a tribunal to investigate Russia’s crime of aggression. The decisions taken today will allow us to move ahead on that front.”
The Estonian head of government added that the European Commission is in the process of drafting the next package of sanctions against Russia. “It is important that it includes the outlawing of Russian propaganda channels, the decoupling of further financial institutions from SWIFT and also, for example, the banning of diamond exports,” she said.
