During a debate on a review of sanctions against Russia, the government reiterated on Sunday that its stance on the issue was unchanged. The sanctions are effective and also necessary to counter the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, which violates international law. Anyone who questions the sanctions will play into Moscow’s hands, NEOS also warned on Sunday. The ÖVP and the FPÖ had recently voted to relax sanctions.
Upper Austrian governor Thomas Stelzer (ÖVP, photo below) questioned the sanctions in an interview with “Krone” on Friday. You should reconsider that if there are energy bottlenecks in the autumn, he explained. Tyrol’s new ÖVP chairman Anton Mattle, who is currently in the election campaign, was also “open” to pressure to “check the correctness of sanctions”. FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl called for a referendum on Saturday.
The foreign ministry tried in a statement on Sunday to strike a balance, saying the sanctions are “a flexible instrument” and can be adjusted at any time. Therefore, the corresponding decision of the EU Council on the economic sanctions in Brussels is also reviewed every six months.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: ‘The sanctions are working’
At the same time, the department confirmed the effectiveness of the sanctions. “The sanctions are working – a little more every day. The Russian economy will shrink by at least six percent this year, other forecasts even speak of a maximum of ten percent. For the EU, on the other hand, the European Commission expects growth of about 2.7 percent.”
“We want a rules-based world order, not the law of the jungle, where the strong can just take what they want. We cannot and will not allow tanks and missiles to create facts and push boundaries in the 21st century. Putin expects that we, as pluralistic open democracies, will allow ourselves to be divided, that we do not have the will to show him red lines. The greatest strength of the EU is the unity, which we must maintain,” the foreign ministry said.
NEOS warns of the division of Europe
NEOS foreign policy spokesman Helmut Brandstätter made a similar statement on Sunday: “If sanctions against Russia are now called into question, a few Austrian politicians have fallen for the propaganda being spread by Russia,” he said in a statement. a press release. broadcast. “We have to stop playing the Kremlin tune. We must not make the mistake of arguing amongst ourselves here in Europe. The split is exactly what Putin wants,” said the NEOS MP.
The series of attacks in Russia and in occupied Crimea on railways, munitions depots, chemical plants and other infrastructure necessary for warfare shows that more and more Russians are realizing that this is wrong and that they are being lied to. “If these democratic forces in Russia come forward now, then we must support them. At the same time, pressure on Putin must be maintained,” Brandstätter said, calling on the government to bring together all parties that want to stop Putin and stop peace in Ukraine to discuss joint action.
Source: Krone
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