Leon Neal / Bloomberg

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday that she supports the adoption of a new package of EU sanctions against Russia, Reuters reports.

"Considering the current state of affairs, we can now really talk about an improvement in the situation in Ukraine - it is not a 100% ceasefire, but we are still talking about progress. However, the lack of clarity on many other issues indicates that the introduction of new sanctions must happen in the near future," Merkel said, speaking in the German parliament.

At the same time, she specified that the introduction of restrictive measures could be postponed if significant progress is made in the peaceful settlement of the situation in southeastern Ukraine. According to her, Germany will be the first country to advocate for the suspension of sanctions if the peace plan agreed upon on June 5 is implemented. She also noted that "the door to negotiations is open and will remain open."

The day before, the German Chancellor said that sanctions are the only way to put pressure on Russia. In an interview with radio station rbb-Inforadio, she said that Russia's direct involvement in the Ukrainian conflict is "very, very obvious." According to the politician, Moscow's actions cannot be left without consequences, but the conflict cannot be resolved by military means.

EU envoys will meet in Brussels today to discuss the entry into force of new EU sanctions against Russia, taking into account the ceasefire in Ukraine. Maja Kocijancic, a spokeswoman for EU diplomacy chief Catherine Ashton, said on Tuesday that the ceasefire in the east of the country was largely holding.

Washington announced its readiness to strengthen sanctions against Russia today. The United States has completed the formulation of measures to strengthen sanctions against Russia's financial, energy and defense sectors, said U.S. State Department spokesperson Marie Harf. According to her, Washington is in close coordination with the EU on this issue. She also noted that the ceasefire is largely being observed, although there are reports of isolated violations in Luhansk and Donetsk.

On September 5, in Minsk, the contact group signed a protocol on an immediate ceasefire in eastern Ukraine from 18:00 Kyiv time. The protocol consists of 12 points and provides, in particular, for the exchange of prisoners of war, provision of humanitarian aid, and monitoring of the ceasefire regime on the border.

Merkel calls for new sanctions against Russia