German Foreign Minister: 'European Peace Is At Stake'

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/german-foreign-minister-says-more-pressure-should-be-placed-on-russia-a-983209.html



In an interview, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, 58, says the downing of an aircraft carrying 300 Europeans convinced EU leaders of the need for tougher new sanctions against Moscow. German industry, he says, is on board too.

German Foreign Minister: 'European Peace Is At Stake'
Interview Conducted by Nikolaus Blome
July 28, 2014 – 12:52 PM

SPIEGEL: The EU wants to increase sanctions against Moscow step by step. What gives you hope that the continuation of a policy which has failed to deliver the desired results over the past several months will now lead to success?

Steinmeier: There are no guarantees in diplomacy, and this applies especially to crisis situations. The fact that we haven't achieved a sustained de-escalation does not, however, mean that a different course of action would have been more successful. I don't know if Russia wants to be our partner or our adversary. We will have to see. What is certain is that it will remain Europe's neighbor, and you have to be able to talk to your neighbors. That's why our course is the right one. We will increase the pressure but we will at the same time be prepared to negotiate a de-escalation of the conflict with Russia. After the tragedy of MH 17, the deaths of almost 300 people who were innocent and in no way involved in the conflict, and after the undignified actions of the marauding separatists at the site of the crash, we were all convinced that new, substantial measures were the correct answer to an insufficient readiness on the part of Russia to seal its borders with Ukraine and exercise its influence on the separatists.

SPIEGEL: In practical terms, the imperative of European unity means that sanctions can only be strengthened in lockstep. Is that still the right strategy given the ongoing military conflict and the MH 17 tragedy?

Steinmeier: We're already way beyond that. We, the EU foreign ministers, have charted the course and shown great unity in our decision to increase pressure. On Friday, the sanctions lists were expanded to include companies and state institutions for the first time. In a few days, we will also have the formal basis for sanctions against political string-pullers and supporters. Economic measures are also on the table. We want to spread the burden fairly with targeted rules that can be strengthened or reduced when Russia moves. We hope to make decisions about them in the coming days.