MADRID, March 2. /TASS/. The European Union is not at war with Russia, but supports Ukraine in the current situation, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell told Spanish radio station Cadena SER.
"Sanctions are necessary, but sanctions in themselves are not politics, they are a reaction to circumstances, we need solutions [to the problem that has arisen], and these solutions should be connected with diplomacy," Borrell believes. "We are not at war with Russia, but we are on the side of the attacked.
<...> It is extremely irresponsible to talk about a nuclear war," he said.
Borrell insisted that the issue of creating a European army is not on the continentwide bloc’s agenda right now. That said, he believes that EU member states should improve coordination between national armed forces and step up joint defense spending.
"Sanctions are imposed in order to damage the economy of the country under sanctions, but they also damage you in return, so we must be ready to pay the price," the European diplomacy chief explained.
On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin responded to the appeal of the leaders of the republics of Donbass and announced a special military operation. He stressed that Moscow has no plans to occupy Ukrainian territories. The Russian Defense Ministry reassured that Russian troops are not targeting Ukrainian cities, but are limited to surgically striking and incapacitating Ukrainian military infrastructure. There are no threats whatsoever to the civilian population.