Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has called for the 18th EU sanctions package against Russia to be as far-reaching as possible. He proposed disconnecting the remaining Russian banks from the SWIFT system, blacklisting all vessels in Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet,” and expanding restrictions on energy companies that help finance the Russian state budget.
That is according to Deutsche Welle, Ukrinform reports.
“Otherwise, they will consider us weak and believe that Europe is not ready to make bold decisions,” Nauseda stated in an interview with Bild am Sonntag.
He criticized the existing sanctions as “not decisive enough,” noting that Russia has managed to circumvent many of them with the help of third countries. “That is why the Russian economy — although not in great shape — still functions relatively well under the current circumstances,” the Lithuanian leader said.
Nauseda also criticized new German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, arguing that Merz’s threats of sanctions during a recent visit to Kyiv had no follow-through.
“This is a problem. It affects not only the credibility of our sanctions, but the credibility of all our actions toward Russia and our support for Ukraine. We have repeatedly stated that we will support Ukraine by delivering fighter jets, long-range missiles, and ammunition. But we fail to keep these promises,” he said.
He warned that “Russia will not stop at Ukraine” and described the situation as a threat to all of Europe.
In this context, Nauseda called on NATO allies to contribute to the collective strength of the alliance and thanked Germany for stationing a Bundeswehr brigade in Lithuania. He described the deployment as “an important part of the strategy” in terms of strengthening the national army and promised a warm welcome for the German troops.
Earlier, Nauseda stated that Lithuania would support Ukraine until victory, which he defines as the full restoration of its territories occupied by Russia.
Source: Nauseda urges maximum expansion of EU sanctions against Russia
