UK threatens Russia with ‘massive consequences’, financial sanctions if Ukraine invaded
The UK has threatened Russia with massive consequences and financial sanctions if it carries out any military action against Ukraine.
Addressing the House of Commons on Thursday, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss accused the Russian government of “aggression,” saying that “we will not accept the campaign Russia is waging to subvert its democratic neighbors.”
“They have falsely cast Ukraine as a threat to justify their aggressive stance,” she said, referring to Russia’s amassing of troops and armaments along the border with Ukraine in response to the Western military buildup.
The Foreign Secretary said any further military incursion into Ukraine by Russia would bring “massive consequences, including coordinated sanctions to impose a severe cost on Russia's interests and economy.”
“The UK is working with our partners on these sanctions, including high impact measures targeting the Russian financial sector and individuals,” Truss said.
Western governments accuse Russia of planning “an invasion” of Ukraine. Moscow rejects the allegations and insists that the border deployments are defensive in nature.
“It's vital that NATO is united in pushing back against Russia threatening behavior,” Truss said.
The Russian government has repeatedly reiterated that the expansion of NATO military infrastructure in Ukraine is a red line for Moscow and that any future expansion must exclude Ukraine and other former Soviet countries.
Truss also said her government is against the Nord Stream 2 pipeline gas project, in spite of the fact that it will provide Europe with gas resources in low prices.
“Europe must reduce its dependence on Russian gas,” she said. “Britain remains opposed to Nord Stream 2 and I'm working with allies and partners to highlight the strategic risks of this project.”
Russian officials have called on the US and European powers not to represent the project as a political issue.
The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is a vast network of offshore natural gas pipelines in Europe, running under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany. Earlier in September, the construction of the pipeline was completed but it lays idle, awaiting regulatory approval from Berlin and Brussels.
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