US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it was “imperative” for European countries to stop relying on Russian energy, especially as the Ukrainian war continues.
Speaking at a joint press conference in Tallinn, Estonia’s capital, with Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, Blinken said that at this time there is a “significant, not just opportunity, but imperative [necessidade] to finally abandon, for many countries in Europe, dependence on Russian energy. Because Russia uses it as a weapon.”
Kallas asked to fully exclude Russia and Belarus from the high-security SWIFT payment network and restrict their access to cryptocurrencies.
Countries should focus on Russia’s “total isolation” from the “free world,” she said. The deteriorating security situation “requires rapid changes in European security,” she stressed, adding that the world must be prepared for the worst, which is yet to come.
“Therefore, Putin’s violence must be correlated with the new sanctions and also the isolation decisions,” Kallas said.
Kallas also called on NATO to work on an “updated defense strategy in our region”.
She thanked Blinken for the United States’ “hard work” in building unity within NATO allies, adding that she called for a “permanent and significant defense by NATO in the Baltic region.”
Despite the grim situation on the ground, NATO is unwilling to get directly involved in the conflict – including the creation of a no-fly zone – beyond supporting Ukraine’s resistance to an invasion that is killing civilians.
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
