The President considers it wrong policy when sanctions are imposed after Russia has done something, because it may decide to continue doing what it is doing.
Zelensky urged to impose sanctions not after the aggression, but before / photo REUTERS
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky believes that the West should impose sanctions against the Russian Federation now, and not wait for a possible invasion of Russian troops drawn to the border of Ukraine.
The head of state said this in an interview with The Washington Post .
“Today our partners say that the war could start tomorrow if there is a powerful escalation on the Russian side, and in this case, powerful sanctions will be applied. But if we are talking about the sanctions policy and the likelihood of an escalation, then the question is why you do not sanctions now instead of waiting for the escalation to pass?” Zelensky stressed.
“I just want to be clear. As a country that is building a strong economy and implementing reforms, I support the imposition of sanctions right now. I asked one leader: why do you support sanctions against Russia in case there is an invasion of Ukraine? Why do you need sanctions after we lose the entire territory of Ukraine?” the president said.
The head of state was asked how effective sanctions would be in preventing war.
“Sanctions are considered a preventive measure because they can be applied and then lifted. If there is an invasion, will you impose sanctions after we may have already lost some territory? Once you impose sanctions, what will Russia do?” Zelensky said.
The President considers it wrong policy when sanctions are imposed after Russia has done something, because it may decide to continue doing what it is doing. “Therefore, as soon as you impose even more powerful sanctions, they (the Russians – UNIAN) will look at you and say: ‘Look, we can deal with this, we can continue as it was.’ I think this is wrong,” Zelensky stressed.
In addition, the head of state was asked if he believes that Russia’s disconnection from the SWIFT international payment system could have a certain effect on Russia if such a decision is made.
“I don’t understand why the world shouldn’t be united regarding the application of sanctions,” Zelensky said.
Recall, on January 18, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that the Russian Federation could attack Ukraine at any moment .
On January 19, Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged to keep calm and confidence in the Ukrainian army, “not to wind up ourselves, to react to everything wisely, not emotionally, with your head, not with your heart, not to shout ‘everything is lost’, but to know that everything is under control and everything is going according to plan.”
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has warned Russia of serious consequences if it invades Ukraine. He noted that the United States will consider crossing the border by at least one Russian military as an invasion.
(C)UNIAN 2022
‘Why do you need sanctions after we lose the entire territory of Ukraine?” the president said.’
Exactly. We need measures to defend Ukraine to make it less likely the enemy invades. This could be either sanctions or arming Ukraine’s air force and navy to the teeth. Anyhow, it needs to happen NOW!
The sanctions will come when the mafiosi have attacked because those who are doing the sanctioning are complete cowards. They are afraid of provoking the crime syndicate.