Madbouly Egypt's development model at UN conference    Egypt's Foreign Minister urges diplomacy on Iran nuclear issue in IAEA call    Egypt, Iran FMs discuss Gaza truce, nuclear talks revival    Egypt's Environment Minister calls for stronger action on desertification, climate resilience in Africa    Egypt's Q3 GDP growth hits three-year high of 4.77%    Peace is not imposed by bombing… nor achieved by normalisation peoples reject: Al-Sisi    Al-Sisi reaffirms Egypt's support for Libyan unity, withdrawal of foreign forces    Spinneys Opens A New Store in Hurghada    Egypt to launch new dialysis filter factory in July, covering 65% of domestic demand    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Egypt leverages diplomacy to advance global health partnerships    Egypt to toughen truck safety rules following fatal Ring Road accident    Egypt condemns Pakistan convoy attack, voices solidarity    Egypt, Mauritania eye joint healthcare plans    Egypt's FM, UK security adviser discuss de-escalation    US Fed holds rates steady    EGX ends in green on June 16    Egypt's EHA, Schneider Electric sign MoU on sustainable infrastructure    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Grand Egyptian Museum opening delayed to Q4    Egypt delays Grand Museum opening to Q4 amid regional tensions    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's EDA joins high-level Africa-Europe medicines regulatory talks    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Egypt discovers three New Kingdom tombs in Luxor's Dra' Abu El-Naga    Egypt launches "Memory of the City" app to document urban history    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Cabinet approves establishment of national medical tourism council to boost healthcare sector    Egypt's PM follows up on Julius Nyerere dam project in Tanzania    Egypt's FM inspects Julius Nyerere Dam project in Tanzania    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Russia expects no fresh sanctions from Europe as Italy's Renzi takes a stand
Published in Amwal Al Ghad on 22 - 10 - 2016

Leaders in Europe have ruled out introducing a fresh bout of sanctions against Russia for its role in the Syrian conflict, with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi leading the argument against more economic punishment for the country.
After nine hours of talks on Thursday night, Renzi successfully fought against including a reference to new immediate sanctions in the EU's worded summit statement released Friday. He said to reporters in Brussels, "I think that to refer in the text to sanctions makes no sense."
Renzi positioned himself on the opposite side of the debate to U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, all of whom want to exert the maximum pressure – including sanctions if necessary - on Russia in a bid to encourage President Vladimir Putin's armed forces to desist from their continued assault on Aleppo.
The besieged Syrian city has suffered from the killing of hundreds of civilians and currently counts around 275,000 people as trapped within its confines, after months of indiscriminate attacks, including on children, aid convoys and hospitals, according to Reuters.
Russia's involvement over the past year has successfully weakened the position of rebel fighters and shored up Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.
Despite the omission of sanctions from the EU's latest official statement, President Hollande, emerging from talks in Berlin on Wednesday night with Russia's Putin and Germany's Merkel, insisted the measure was not definitively off the table yet.
"At this stage, there are no sanctions linked to the Russian intervention in Syria," Hollande told reporters.
"If there are new massacres, bombing, we'll need to start by sanctioning the Syrians who are responsible; if it continues bombing, Russia will also expose itself to a response from the EU, but we're not there yet," he added.
In further developments on Friday, the top United Nations human rights official, Zeid Ra'ad al Hussein, described the ongoing siege and bombing of eastern Aleppo as "crimes of historic proportions," according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, Britain's government minister for Africa and the Middle East, Tobias Ellwood, pointed the finger more directly, saying, "Russia, you are making the situation worse, not solving it," according to the news agency. This came during a specially convened session of the United Nations Human Rights Council called by London to begin an inquiry into the attacks.
A lack of appetite for further complicating ties with Moscow extended beyond Italy, with Dutch Prime Minster Mark Rutte discussing with the group his continued difficulty in getting his people to support an EU free trade deal with ex-Soviet state Ukraine and Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel telling CNBC in Brussels that it was essential for the "27+1" members of the EU to reach a "common solution".
Earlier this week, EU High Commissionner Federica Mogherini displayed her lack of enthusiasm for sanctions, telling reporters, "You know, I personally tend to focus on the fact that the European Union doesn't only have sanctions in its toolbox, we have many other instruments we can use."
But measures already attempted by EU leaders, including a French-led attempt to enforce a cease-fire in Syria, via the United Nations Security Council, and a formal condemnation of Russia's airstrikes on eastern Aleppo have had little effect.
And although Russia told the United Nations it would cease bombardment of the area for 11 hours a day for four days, a fleet of Russian warships carrying fighter bombers was seen headed for Syria as the European leaders continued their discussion on Thursday, as part of a naval operation that NATO believes aims to up the attack on Aleppo, according to Reuters.
The debate and threat of measures, which could potentially also end up harming Italy's economy which has close ties to Russia, comes at a difficult time for Renzi who is now fully focused on an impending domestic referendum over his reform agenda, on which he has staked his political career.
Source: CNBC


Clic here to read the story from its source.