Vice Chancellor Germany warned against new sanctions against Russia

Vice-Chancellor Germar Sigmar Gabriel warned the West against further weakening of Russia as a result of tightening sanctions. Distribution in Russia is dangerous for all of Europe, although the world has the forces that they want, he said in an interview with Bild Am Sonntag weekly.

“Those who want to destabilize Russia even more in economically and political terms are pursuing completely different interests,” said Gabriel, who heads the Ministry of Economy in the Government of Germany. He explained that in Europe and the United States there are forces who want to "finally put on the shoulder blades of another opponent-stroke." Gabriel, however, emphasized that this cannot be in German and European interests. “He who strives for this provokes a much more dangerous situation for all of us in Europe,” the DW minister quotes the interview.

He noted that the purpose of the sanctions imposed against Russia is to return the country to the negotiating table in order to find a peaceful decision of the crisis in Ukraine. “We want to help resolve the conflict in Ukraine, and not put Russia on your knees,” Gabriel said. “If Russia in addition cannot be a partner in resolving conflicts, then this will have explosive consequences for the whole world.”

As Reuters notes, there is no consensus among German politicians about Russia. Giving such an interview, Gabriel emphasized the side of the Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Foreign Ministry Frank Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who previously also warned against the expansion of sanctions against Moscow. The Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel, as the agency indicates, has recently tightened criticism of Russia.