By Ilgin Karlidag
BRUSSELS
The European Union needs to provide a prompt response to the state of affairs in Ukraine, the new president of the European Council said Thursday.
“The situation in Ukraine remains dramatic and dynamic, and requires an immediate response,” Donald Tusk told at the press conference following a summit in Brussels where EU leaders gathered Thursday night.
''That's why we have just discussed giving financial support to Ukraine; we are sending a strong signal on our readiness to do so,” he added, without specifying details of the support.
“We will come back to this next March,” he said.
The International Monetary Fund estimates Ukraine needs another $15 billion in assistance but the EU has a limited capacity to help, according to Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission.
Tusk said humanitarian assistance, especially to eastern Ukraine, would be demanding and require a strategy.
“Europe needs a united strategy towards Ukraine but especially against Russia – Russia is our strategic problem,” Tusk said.
There is “no doubt” that Russia’s reaction to Ukraine was “provoked” by Kiev’s decision to sign a trade deal with the EU, he said.
His comments came on the same day when the EU imposed more sanctions on European investment in Crimea. The move is an attempt to prevent Russia from using Crimea to exploit Black Sea oil, according to officials.
Beginning Dec. 20, investment in Crimea and Sevastopol will be prohibited and EU companies will no longer be able to buy real estate or finance companies in Crimea, the Council said in a statement.
“These sanctions have been discussed for a long time and we need to show that we do not recognize the annexation of Crimea,” Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Lövfen told reporters Thursday, ahead of the summit.
In August, Russia responded to the EU and U.S. sanctions over Ukraine by imposing an embargo on food imports from the EU, US and other Western countries.
The embargo on food imports includes fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, milk and dairy imports – among the largest categories of food exports to Russia from the EU.
“EU and all the member states want to be together towards the challenges of our eastern borders,” Tusk said.
“We have to be realistic not [optimistic],” he said. “We have to treat this game as a long-term game, not just one reaction to one crisis,” he added.
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