The European Union is working on a package of economic and financial sanctions against Russia in the event of a possible escalation of the situation in Ukraine. This was stated by Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg in an interview with Presse am Sonntag.
"At the moment, behind the scenes, work is under way on an extensive economic and financial sanctions package. In the event of an escalation, a very clear, unambiguous and quick response will follow", RIA Novosti quoted him.
The head of the Austrian foreign ministry also admitted that Russia would be disconnected from the SWIFT system. "Nothing is excluded from the discussion. Much will depend on what actually happens. If Russian troops invade Ukrainian territory on a wide front, then this is the worst-case scenario. There are other scenarios: cyber attacks, attacks by unmarked mercenaries", the minister stressed.
In addition, he once again opposed sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 project due to the situation in Ukraine. "Europe is to a certain extent dependent on energy from Russia. This is the reality, and Nord Stream 2 is not even part of it. We will not change this overnight if we want to have heat and electricity,” Schallenberg concluded.
Let us remind you that last week, the US Congress presented a bill on new sanctions against Russia in the event of an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. The congressme thought about banning operations with Russia's primary and secondary government debt. In addition, they proposed imposing sanctions against the Russian banking sector and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. The United States may also demand that Russia be disconnected from the SWIFT international payment system.
The Daily Telegraph had previously reported that the UK government was considering the possibility of disconnecting the Russian Federation from SWIFT. As noted, the United Kingdom will take these measures in the event of Russia's "invasion" of Ukraine.
