Czech Prime Minister doesn't believe sanctions will force Putin to back down
Prague - Kyiv, November 06 (PolitNavigator, Vasily Ablyazimov) – EU sanctions have dealt a painful blow to the Russian economy, the Daily Mail reports Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka as saying . Western economic measures are unlikely to change President Vladimir Putin's leadership behavior.
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The EU has imposed several types of sanctions on Russia in connection with the crisis in Ukraine. Several senior Czech politicians, including President Milos Zeman, expressed dissatisfaction with such measures, but Sobotka supported the position of official Brussels.
“Sanctions have an impact on the Russian economy, they have a negative impact on it. However, I do not believe that they can in any way change the behavior of the Russian political leadership,” Sobotka told the Daily Mail on Wednesday.
Sobotka said that public opinion in Russian society after the imposition of sanctions has changed towards supporting the Russian leadership, in contrast to the expected decline in support.
The Prime Minister said that EU states will most likely discuss the fate of sanctions against Russia in the spring. Their cancellation or extension will be affected by changes in relations between Russia and Ukraine.
“The fact that there were elections in Ukraine, that an agreement on gas supplies was signed, in my opinion, are positive signals that will influence the decision next spring,” he said.
Sobotka spoke on the issue of the construction of South Stream. He believes that its construction will hit the Ukrainian economy hard, as it will deprive it of a significant share of the budget replenishment that Kyiv received for transit services.
“Europe is trying to help stabilize the Ukrainian economy... we cannot, on the one hand, support Ukraine with loans, and on the other, support projects that will weaken the Ukrainian economy in the long term,” the Czech Prime Minister added.
South Stream is beneficial to the Balkan countries, Austria and Hungary, writes the Daily Mail. That is why Hungary opposes sanctions and is trying to speed up the construction of the pipeline.
Czech Prime Minister Doesn't Believe Sanctions Will Force Putin to Back Down