Aggravation of Sanctions Unwanted, but Russian Troops in Ukraine ‘Intolerable’ – Hollande

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Francois Hollande said he does not want economic sanctions against Moscow to intensify, but stressed that Russia’s possible military presence in Ukraine is unacceptable and could trigger new restrictions, the French president said at a meeting of French ambassadors in Paris on Thursday.

“Europe will continue [to introduce sanctions], or it could even intensify them in case of an escalation [of the situation in Ukraine]. I do not want this, as this is not in the interest of France, the European Union, or Russia,” Hollande said.

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The French president added that Paris would not tolerate Russian military presence in Ukraine.

“If it turns out that there are Russian soldiers present on Ukrainian soil, it would be intolerable and unacceptable,” Hollande said at the meeting.

He added that Moscow must stop providing aid for eastern Ukrainian independence forces and should respect Ukraine’s sovereignty.
Late July, the United States and the European Union imposed a new round of economic sanctions against Russia’s banking and oil sectors due to Moscow’s stance on the Ukrainian crisis and its alleged aiding of eastern Ukrainian forces fighting for independence from Kiev.

The sanctions limited access to EU and US capital markets for a number of Russian state banks, and also prohibited the sale of certain oil extraction equipment to Russia. In August, Russia reacted by introducing a one-year ban on certain food imports on countries that imposed economic sanctions on Russia. The list of banned products includes meat, fish, fruits, vegetables and dairy products.