Sanctions keep Russia from unleashing war against Europe – Ukrainian President’s Office chief

That’s according to Andriy Yermak, Head of the Presidential Office, who spoke at the Fair Play conference on introducing additional sanctions against Russia, an Ukrinform correspondent reports

“As long as sanctions are in place, this at least somehow deters Russia from starting a war against Europe, against NATO countries after Ukraine, because they do have such plans.” Yermak said.

Sanctions are the “second” element of deterring Russia, he believes.

“The one thing that can keep them at bay is the heroic fight of our Ukrainian nation and the second is sanctions. I can say that today European partners and Americans are aware of this,” the head of the President’s Office said.

At the same time, he admitted that the sanctions imposed by individual countries are not too effective. “They are not too painful for Russia, but in the aggregate, when all this comes together, it is really a big issue for Russia,” Yermak noted.

This year alone, Russia’s hydrocarbon revenues plunged by 14%. “This is RUB 3.4 trillion deficit, which is 1.5% of GDP. (…)Russia’s public debt in June alone grew by RUB 709 billion,” Yermak said.

According to the official, these and other numbers indicate that “sanctions work”.

“Everyone who stepped on Ukrainian soil to kill, even if they were here for a week, all of them and their family members, including children, should face lifelong sanctions; they should not be part of a civilized world,” Yermak emphasized.

He noted that at the outset of the full-scale invasion, he shared with partners phone intercepts where Russian soldiers told their spouses of murder, looting, and rape.

“Do you want these pathological murderers, maniacs on your streets of Paris, Rome, or Berlin tomorrow?” Yermak noted.

He emphasized that “these people hate anything that’s European”.

“These people have no respect for our values, our common values. And that is why, if they are so happy, let them have their vacations on Lake Baikal, in North Korea, China, and so on. Let them stick to those places. They don’t belong in the civilized world today,” Yermak said.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron said that in the coming days, the EU could adopt the 18th sanctions package, the most ambitious one since the start of the big war, including an embargo on Russian oil processed in third countries.