The EU warns: "Any aggression against Ukraine will have a high cost for Russia"

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"Any aggression against Ukraine will have a high cost for Russia." That is the message that the EU foreign ministers have sent, through the mouth of the high representative Josep Borrell, to Moscow this Monday. For weeks

, a raid or a full-blown invasion has been

over the Ukrainian border. The Ukrainian Government came to denounce him in person last month, the North American Executive fears it and the Old Continent is increasingly seeing it with more concern. They do not know what, how or when, but the possibility of repeating what happened in 2014 arouses more than bitter memories and that is why everyone has "put themselves in a deterrent mode," the Spaniard warned.

The situation in Brussels is very delicate. What happened in both the Crimea and the Donbas makes the threats not very worrying in the Kremlin. There are already

There are complicated relationships, but the territory changed hands and no one prevented it. Putin is aware of that, but also that just a few months ago, to the surprise and indignation of many European partners, Germany and France proposed on the eve of a European Council (such as the one held this week) a policy of rapprochement with Moscow, to despite everything. So the margin is wide and constant pressures are coming from the East. The president threatens to ask for de-escalation while from his Foreign Ministry they forget carrots: "The lack of progress in the political-diplomatic resolution of this problem would lead to a military response from Russia (...) and there would be a new wave of confrontation" , they aim.

The message is that the EU is ready and that any challenge will have an answer. That there will be immediate sanctions, punishment. But it is not clear what. "The ministers, all of them, have been very clear today: any aggression will have political consequences and a high economic cost," Borrell promised. But although there is

, there are very notable differences in degree and neither desire to give too many clues. The EU believes that if its battery of measures were too clear by now, Putin could make a cost-benefit calculation and decide how far to push. "We are committed to diplomatic efforts, but there is an agreement by all to prepare the economic and political framework in case there is hostile action contrary to international law and act accordingly. We want the deterrence to be the most effective possible," said the Spanish minister,

.

The European Union, always very cautious, is trapped. It needs to be forceful, and credible, but it scares you over-braking. "Our support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine is absolute. Talking more is not good for deterrence, but it is good for escalation. It is one thing to be prepared and make it clear and another is to speak as if we wanted it to happen," he said. added Albares urging to lower the tension in all possible ways. "We are studying, together with the United States and the United Kingdom, what could be done, when and how in a coordinated manner, but do not wait for decisions on this," the high representative had already warned in the morning.

The meeting comes after the one held this weekend by the foreign officials of the G7 in Liverpool, in which it was agreed to convey solid support to Ukraine, "defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity." The process is lime and sand. On Wednesday, the European Parliament will present the Sakharov Prize to Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who will not be able to collect it because he is in prison. And during the meeting, the ministers approved the framework that will serve to sanction the Russian company of mercenaries Wagner, very active in Africa. The EU believes its involvement in human rights violations and interference in electoral processes has been proven. "The Wagner Group has recruited, trained and dispatched private military operatives to conflict zones around the world to

in violation of international law, including international human rights law, "the EU Council explained in a statement on Monday.

But from the other, the answer is equally clear and hard.

They emphasize a "total lack of confidence in NATO" and specific threats are put on the table, such as bringing intermediate-range nuclear missiles to the continent, banned since the 1987 agreements between Gorbachev and Reagan.

Bigger words and much more powerful than promises of surgical financial sanctions.

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