Europe needs pressure tools before negotiating with Russia – Lithuanian FM

The European Union should speak with Russia about ending the war in Ukraine only from a position of strength.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys said this ahead of the meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“Once again: if we want to get engaged with Russia in different talks and especially in tough ones that concern the stopping of this war, we have to approach it from a position of strength, not a position of looser,” the minister said.

In his view, negotiations should not begin with an admission that Europe has no leverage.

“I know what Russians will tell us. We know their demands coming back from 2021, and they will not only be related to Ukraine, they will also be related to us – the deployment of forces and many other things. So we have to collect our strength,” Budrys said.

By this he meant long-term financial support for Ukraine, accelerating Ukraine’s EU accession process, and addressing frozen Russian assets.

“We should not forget that we still have this issue unsolved. Yes, we covered it with €90 billion (loan), but we have to talk about it. When we have these instruments, when we have these sticks in the hands, then, I believe, we can talks with positive results with Russia, but not now,” the minister said.

As previously reported, Budrys also believes that participants in Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine should not be allowed to enter EU territory or enjoy European benefits.