Original Title: In response to sanctions, Russia included 73 people including the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on the sanctions list
[环球时报驻俄罗斯特约记者 林杳 环球时报特约记者 柳直]Russia recently announced sanctions on 73 people including Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba and Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Danilov. The Russian side stated that this is a response to Ukraine’s sanctions on Russian citizens and entities. Culiba believes that the Russian side’s move is in retaliation for his organization of the “Crimean Platform” summit to be held on the 23rd. According to a Russian government agency, Moscow’s new sanctions on Kiev have sent a signal that Russia-Ukraine relations have dropped to an unprecedented level.
According to the Russian “Kommersant” report on the 22nd, Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) Human Rights Commissioner Denisova was also included in the Russian sanctions list. Russia stated that the sanctions imposed on Ukrainian officials and related persons are in response to Ukraine’s sanctions on Russian citizens and entities. On the 20th, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine imposed sanctions on representatives of the Russian military command.
So far, Russia has imposed sanctions on 922 Ukrainians. After the Crimea incident in 2014, Russia-Ukraine relations deteriorated sharply. Ukraine adopted a number of sanctions against Russia and included a large number of Russians and companies on the sanctions list. For this reason, in October 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order to impose special economic restrictions on Ukraine in response to Uzbek’s unfriendly behavior. Subsequently, Russia has repeatedly imposed sanctions on Ukrainians and companies, and the sanctions list has been continuously expanded. Those on the list will be prohibited from entering Russia, and they will be prohibited from engaging in financial transactions and owning securities and property in Russia. Of course, this list is not static. Earlier, Russia had removed some people from the list.
Regarding Russia’s latest sanctions, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on the 21st to protest, saying that this is “a continuation of all forms of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine” and a provocation before the opening of the “Crimean Platform” summit. Ukraine reserves The right to take appropriate response measures in accordance with international law and principles. Danilov said that his inclusion on the Russian sanctions list is the best gift to Ukraine for the 30th anniversary of its independence. “I think this is the highest honor and best evaluation of our joint protection of national interests.” Kuleba said on Twitter that Russia retaliated against him for the “Crimean Platform” summit, but this would not prevent Ukraine’s actions.
On the 23rd, Ukraine will launch the “Crimean Platform” and hold its first platform summit. Uzbek President Zelens proposed the creation of the “Crimean Platform” in October 2020, which aims to bring the Crimea issue back to the public eye and regain control of the Crimea region. This is the largest multilateral international dialogue mechanism hosted by Ukraine since its independence. According to a report from the “Russia Today” television station on the 22nd, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that 44 countries and international organizations have agreed to participate in the meeting. However, only the heads of state or government of 14 countries including the Baltic States, Poland, Sweden and Finland will attend the meeting. Michelle, President of the European Council, will speak on behalf of the European Union. Other countries will send lower-level officials to participate.
Russia has expressed dissatisfaction with Ukraine’s “Crimean Platform” summit. Some experts believe this is a conspiracy by Western countries such as the United States and Britain. According to the Russian “Viewpoint”, the spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Zakharova said on the 21st that the “Crimea Platform” summit will focus on political issues, rather than the real situation in Crimea. She emphasized that Russia will pay attention to the positions of participating countries and make decisions accordingly. Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov recently stated that the “Crimean Platform” summit is a “carnival gathering of demons”. During the meeting, the West will continue to cultivate the “neo-Nazism and nationalist sentiments” of the contemporary Ukrainian government.
Today’s Russian International News Agency President Kiselev said on the 21st that the “Crimean Platform” is a project of the British intelligence agency. The West is not interested in Ukraine’s problems, but just wants to incite it against Russia. Russian political scientist Kuzmin believes that the platform is organized by Western countries such as Britain and the United States, and many countries hope to use this platform to achieve their own purposes, such as blackmailing Russia.
Russian experts believe that Ukraine hopes that Western countries can send higher-level delegations to the meeting, but for Western countries, the issues of Ukraine and Crimea are “not a priority”. Brutel, an expert at the Russian Institute of International Humanitarian and Political Studies, said that the reluctance of most influential Western countries to send high-level officials to the “Crimea Platform” summit shows that they do not want to completely destroy relations with Russia. A member of the People’s Public Servant Party, the ruling party of Ukraine, said that Kiev can only leave a “beautiful memorial photo” through this summit, and Russia will not abandon Crimea. All Western countries and Ukrainian elites understand this.
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