Ewa Malcher
The EU could revise its relations with Russia and will consider visa and financial sanctions if the situation in Crimea does not improve, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said after an EU Council meeting in Brussels on Monday.
"The European Union has concluded that what Russia did in Crimea has been an act of aggression," Radoslaw Sikorski told a press conference.
He added that the EU demanded a withdrawal of Russian troops to their bases.
"The EU declares that if the conflict is not de-escalated, the relations with the Russian Federation will be revised, for example in the area of visa dialogue, and targeted measures, or simply speaking sanctions, will be imposed. That is visa and financial sanctions," the foreign minister said.
The targeted measures, including assets freeze, could affect "persons responsible for the decisions related to the acts of aggression against Ukraine," Sikorski said.
Sikorski said he was not a supporter of imposing restrictions that could affect ordinary Russians.
Further sanctions that could hit "the Russian hydrocarbons sector" are also considered, he added.
The North Atlantic Council will meet on Tuesday to discuss the aggression in Ukraine under Article 4 of the Washington Treaty, for the fourth time in NATO's history, Sikorski wrote on Twitter late on Monday.
The meeting was requested by Poland, Minister Sikorski said.
Under Article 4, any ally can request consultations whenever, in the opinion of any of them, their territorial integrity, political independence or security is threatened. (PAP)
