Last year, on June 22, 2015, the European Union extended the duration of sanctions imposed on Russia for its role in the conflict in Ukraine for an additional six months. The Kremlin noted that it was the 74th anniversary of Nazi Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union.
In March 2015, the EU linked the sanctions to the complete implementation of the Minsk agreements. The June 22 decision by the EU that included asset freezes on some Russian companies and individuals as well as travel bans was prompted by Russia’s destabilizing role in eastern Ukraine and Russia’s actions in Crimea since its annexation. Also in June 2015, the G-7 extended sanctions for an additional six months.
The Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry denounced the EU extension of sanctions as “cynical” and a victory of “the Russophobe lobby” in Europe.
Russia’s Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, a former KGB colleague of President Vladimir Putin, explained Moscow’s interpretation of the situation in Ukraine as being manufactured by the U.S.’s intent to occupy Russia’s territory and exploit its natural resources as part of a worldwide conspiracy to destroy Russia as an independent state.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg summarized the dominant Western opinion: “There can be no doubt that Russia is responsible for aggressive actions in Europe. And that’s the reason why we, NATO, are responding in a defensive way.”
Pavel Felgenhauer analyzed the two sides: “Irrespective of the true reality of the situation, both sides believe they are on the defensive and under threat. Neither side is really talking about substance anymore, but only exchanging barbs and accusations in the true spirit of the Cold War that had ended with the collapse of the Berlin wall in 1989. Both sides say they will not be dragged into a new arms race and what is happening is not a new cold war. Indeed, the Cold War was comfortably cold in Europe, while around the globe it is quite hot, with constant proxy wars in Asia, Africa and Latin America taking a bloody toll. Now the fighting has reached Europe in eastern Ukraine. A vicious cycle of response to a response to a response is forming on the continent that has a clear potential to escalate.”
Source: “Defensive posture and feeling of threat prevail in both Moscow and Brussels,” by Pavel Felgenhauer (Eurasia Daily Monitor), The Ukrainian Weekly, July 12, 2015.