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“I would not speculate on whether our partners will take further illegal, unilateral and restrictive measures against my country. If that happens, we will be ready to react,” the diplomat told the German newspaper die Welt before the meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.
“In any case, Russia’s measures will be based on facts and analysis, not guesswork and emotion,” Chizhov stressed.
The Russian ambassador criticized “the decisions of the EU of our partners” towards Russia, calling them “illogical and surprisingly politicized”. The EU has systematically obstructed the development of relations with Russia in recent years under “absurd pretexts”. Russia, meanwhile, is a “reliable partner” that does not close the door.
The pretext for the new EU sanctions is the arrest of Kremlin critic Alexei Navaln and the harsh action of the services against the protesters who took to the streets to support him.
Vladimir Chizhov
Navaln, a critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was arrested immediately after returning from Germany, where he was being treated following a poison attack on him in Russia. Soon after, he was sentenced to nearly three years in prison for violating the conditions of his previous probation during his treatment.
On Saturday, a Moscow court upheld A. Navalnas’ sentence of one and a half years in prison. Furthermore, in another trial for defaming a war veteran, he was fined 9,500 euros.
The EU foreign ministers, according to diplomats, intend to make a decision in principle on new sanctions on Russia on Monday.
Late on Sunday, two close Navalno aides met in Brussels with eight EU foreign ministers and several community ambassadors.
One of these colleagues, Leonid Volkov, told AFP that “there was talk of selective personal sanctions [Rusijos prezidentui Vladimirui] “Putin’s closest allies and those guilty of gross human rights abuses.”
However, EU diplomats said action could only be taken against those directly responsible for Russia’s treatment of Navaln, as the target list could be challenged in court.
The meeting, which took place on Sunday, was started by Lithuania. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis did not mention any other EU officials involved.
“It just came to our knowledge then [pirmadieniui] “That we will decide unanimously on the list” to whom the new sanctions will apply, said AF Landsberg.
The position on Moscow hardened after Borrell’s failed trip to Russia, during which Moscow announced the expulsion of three European diplomats and refused to negotiate cooperation.
The EU has repeatedly imposed sanctions on Russia on several occasions for the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and incitement to war in eastern Ukraine.
In October, the bloc added six officials to the list of sanctions related to the poisoning of A. Navalnas last year with the nerve paralyzing substance Novičiok.
Putin’s most prominent critic was sentenced to more than two and a half years in prison this month after returning to Russia after receiving treatment in Germany.
The verdict has also sparked mass protests in many Russian cities, during which thousands of people have been detained by security forces.
Navaln’s Companion: Putin Prepares for Election Fraud in September
A close associate of the doomed Kremlin critic Navaln called on the European Union to impose sanctions on a close circle of Russian President Vladimir Putin and warned that the Kremlin was preparing to rig the September parliamentary elections.
The head of A. Navalnas headquarters, L. Volkov, said this after a meeting with a group of EU foreign ministers held in Brussels on Sunday evening at the initiative of Lithuania.
“Everything that is happening in Russia must be seen in the context of the next elections to the Duma. We are in the middle of the political season and almost all of Navalnas’ comrades have been deported or under house arrest,” L. Volkov said after a meeting with EU ministers by phone BNS.
“It is not just Navaln’s personal story, it is about Putin preparing for a big electoral platform in September,” Volkov said.
He said that he had discussed with EU ministers “personal sanctions targeting Putin’s closest allies and people guilty of serious human rights abuses, but not sanctions on the Russian economy that could be exploited by propaganda.”
Eight EU foreign ministers, ambassadors from most other countries and a representative from the European Commission attended a meeting with Ivan Volkov and another assistant to A. Navaln, head of the Ivan Zhdanov Anti-Corruption Fund, on Sunday night.
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