A Russian Foreign Ministry
spokeswoman has dismissed as “controversial” a proposal by the EU Envoy to
Moscow Vigaudas Ushatskas to write off 20 percent if Ukraine’s debt as a
“friendly gesture” but not to expect any lifting of the sanctions imposed on it
by the EU.
“Over the past few days Mr.
Ushatskas has made a number of fascinating but somewhat controversial
statements… One day he said that Russia should write off 20 percent
of Ukraine’s debt as a ‘friendly gesture’ only to say the next
that we should not expect any lifting of the EU sanctions as a New
Year gift,” Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook on Friday.
She wondered why Russia should give presents
without expecting a return gift in the form of a lifting
of the illegal sanctions maintained by the West essentially due
to Ukraine’s failure to implement the terms of the Minsk
accords.
Maria Zakharova emphasized that even though Ukraine was
getting “New Year presents” in the form of millions of dollars
each year, “the result of these loans was next to nil, probably
because this money was not coming from the heart.”
Vigaudas Ushatskas earlier expressed confidence that the
implementation of the Minsk accords would serve as a “unifying factor
in EU-Russia relations.”
Source: Sputnik News 12-12-2015
