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Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the European Union

Submitted on 2022-03-01 20:07:05

Russian Foreign Ministry statement on the EU’s role in the developments in Ukraine

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For many years, the European Union, posing as a peacemaker, lavishly financed the Kiev regime, which came to power in an anti-constitutional coup. The EU stood in silence while the population of Donbass was being exterminated and the Russian language was being strangled in Ukraine. It disregarded our endless calls to take notice of the predominance of Nazis in the Ukrainian authorities, and the socioeconomic blockade and murder of innocent civilians in the southeast of Ukraine. The EU conditioned its future relations with Russia on the implementation of the Minsk Package of Measures but has done nothing to encourage Kiev to start implementing its main provisions. At the same time, the EU gave Kiev money and visa-free travel and extended anti-Russia sanctions under far-fetched pretexts. The EU took part in Kiev’s performances, which put in question the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation.

Masks have now come off. The February 27 decision to send lethal weapons to the Ukrainian militarists is self-exposing. It has marked the end of Euro-integration as a “pacifist” project allegedly launched to reconcile European nations after WWII. The EU has irrevocably taken the side of the Kiev regime, which waged a policy of genocide against part of its own population.

Unbeknownst to themselves, the Brussels officials started using Orwell’s newspeak. They have announced the intention to “invest” in the war launched in Ukraine in 2014 through a mechanism with a self-explanatory name, the Europe Peace Foundation. The EU leadership unashamedly describes missiles, small arms, munitions and even combat aircraft as “defensive” systems.

The EU has shown the real worth of the rule of law in Europe, having disregarded all the eight criteria of its own “common position” of December 8, 2008 defining common rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment (2008/944/CFSP), which explicitly prohibits the export of weapons and military equipment from the EU in the following cases:

1. if the country of final destination does not respect international obligations and commitments (Kiev disregarded its commitments under the Minsk Package of Measures approved by UN Security Council Resolution 2202);

2. if the country of final destination does not respect human rights, and if there is a clear risk that the military technology or equipment to be exported might be used for internal repression (Kiev is guilty of genocide in Donbass);

3. if an armed conflict is underway, and the deliveries could aggravate existing tensions or conflicts in the country of final destination;

4. if deliveries could hinder the preservation of regional peace, security and stability, and if there is likelihood of armed conflict between the recipient and another country;

5. if deliveries could endanger the national security of the EU member states (that the military technology or equipment to be exported could be used against the interests of the EU member states);

6. if there are doubts regarding the policy of the buyer country, in particular, its compliance with commitments on the non-use of force, and commitments to international humanitarian law and to non-proliferation and other areas of arms control (Kiev is not a shining example of compliance with these commitments, especially in light of the factual instances of grey schemes in arms exports from Ukraine);

7. if there is a risk that the military technology or equipment will be diverted to an undesirable end-user, including terrorist organisations (in light of the uncontrolled distribution of weapons in Ukraine, it is virtually guaranteed that some of them will eventually make their way to the shadow market);

8. if deliveries could disrupt the balance between militarisation and socioeconomic development of the recipient state (Kiev should pay more attention to the Ukrainian economy rather than use force to suppress dissent).

The EU citizens and agencies involved in the delivery of lethal weapons, fuel and lubricants to the Ukrainian Armed Forces will be held responsible for any consequences of these actions during the ongoing special military operation.  They should be aware of the severity of these consequences.

Another myth that has been exposed is the EU’s claim that its unilateral restrictions, which are incompatible with international law, are not directed against the Russian people. The Brussels officials, who only recently posed as a “strategic partner” of Russia, are saying openly that they intend to inflict the maximum possible damage on Russia, hit its weak spots, batter the Russian economy and “suppress Russia’s economic growth.”

We are sure that this is not going to work. We will provide a tough response to the EU’s actions. Russia will continue to ensure the implementation of its vital national interests, notwithstanding the sanctions or threats of sanctions. The Western countries should wake up to the fact that the days of their undivided rule in the global economy are long gone.