Germany says West agrees to more sanctions on Russia after Bucha’s murder

Lviv, Ukraine (Reuters) – Germany said on Sunday the West would agree to more sanctions on Russia in the coming days after Ukraine accused Russian forces of committing war crimes near Kyiv, adding to the already massive economic pressure on the country. Russia about his invasion.

The Russian economy is facing the most serious crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 after the United States and its allies imposed severe sanctions over Putin’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

Russia on Sunday denied the responsibility of its forces for the deaths of civilians in the town of Bucha and said Ukraine had staged a show for Western media.

Reuters saw the bodies scattered across the city. One of them seemed to have his hands tied with a white cloth, and he was shot in the mouth. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of “genocide”. Read more

He warned the West of imposing more sanctions.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a statement to reporters in the Chancellery that “Putin and his supporters will feel the consequences” of their actions.

German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said the European Union should talk about ending Russian gas imports. Read more

Germany, Europe’s largest economy, has so far resisted calls for a ban on energy imports from Russia, saying that its economy and that of other European countries depend on it too much. Russia supplies 40% of Europe’s gas needs.

The United States said those responsible for any war crimes should be held accountable, Britain said it had toughened its sanctions and France denounced “grave violations” by Russian forces in Ukraine.

Penalties

The Kremlin says Western sanctions – the most onerous in modern history – amount to declaring economic war and that Moscow will now look east at partners like China and India.

Largely isolated from the West’s economies, Russia faces its biggest economic contraction in decades while prices are rising. Putin said that the West understands nothing about Russia if it thinks the Russians will succumb to sanctions.

However, cutting off Russian gas – or more of Russia’s natural resources – would kill growth in Europe’s largest economy, send energy prices to record levels, and send the global economy into an inflationary shock.

Russia, which has supplied gas to Europe since the 1970s, will be deprived of hundreds of billions of dollars in foreign exchange earnings. It is likely to toughen its response to the “economic war” of the West.

“The world is much larger than Europe – and in fact Russia is much larger than Europe – so sooner or later we will have a dialogue regardless of what people across the ocean want,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state TV Channel One.

Ukraine called for a complete ban on oil, gas and coal, a ban on Russian ships and shipments, and the disconnection of all Russian banks from the SWIFT system.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24 resulted in the deaths of thousands and the displacement of millions.

Putin says the “special military operation” in Ukraine is necessary because the United States was using Ukraine to threaten Russia and Moscow had to defend against the persecution of Russian speakers by Ukraine.

Ukraine says Moscow launched a war of aggression and Putin’s allegations of persecution are nonsense.

Written by Guy Faulconbridge Editing by Alexandra Hudson

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