Finland and Sweden advocate strengthening EU sanctions against Russia and Belarus
Illustrative photo (Photo: Getty Images)
The European Union needs to strengthen sanctions against Russia. Restrictions are also needed regarding Belarus, reports Reuters.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sweden, Tobias Billstrom, and his Finnish counterpart, Elina Valtonen, today called for the European Union to strengthen sanctions against Russia following the death of the politician Alexei Navalny.
The diplomats also emphasized the importance of sanctions when it comes to undermining Russia's capabilities to wage war against Ukraine.
Specifically, the foreign ministers of the two countries stated that sanctions should be imposed against Belarus due to its support of Russia in the war against Ukraine.
Sanctions against Russia
The United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and other countries continuously impose new restrictions against Russia for its aggression against Ukraine and other harmful activities. Recently, the European Union extended the sanctions imposed against Russia for the war in Ukraine.
The EU is also preparing to impose tariffs on grain imports from Russia and Belarus. This will be the first restriction on food products following Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Baltic countries, as well as Czechia, have proposed to the EU to ban the import of black metals, copper, and aluminum scrap and waste from Russia. Moscow uses the revenue from this import to finance its war against Ukraine.
