Washington, Feb 23, (dpa/GNA) – Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, has praised “painful” US sanctions on Russia in response to its military escalation against its neighbour.
“They’re very specific. They are painful,” Kuleba said at a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Kuleba went on to say that the Ukrainian government was “puzzled” by Washington’s Monday sanctions, in relation to economic activities in Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine.
“We were puzzled because we saw how the side that sought recognition from Russia is being punished, but we didn’t see how Russia, who granted its recognition, is punished. But we saw it today,” Kuleba said.
The minister also went on to say “that there is no such thing as minor, middle, or major invasion. Invasion is an invasion.”
Blinken meanwhile said that Putin’s plan had been to invade Ukraine “all along.”
“Putin’s plan has been to control Ukraine and its people; to destroy Ukraine’s democracy, which offers a stark contrast to the autocracy that he leads; to reclaim Ukraine as a part of Russia,” Blinken said.
GNA