The foreign ministers of EU member states unanimously agreed on new sanctions against Russia on the 22nd local time.
According to AP and AFP news agency, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said this after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Paris, France.
"The sanctions package will be a huge blow to Russia," said Rousseff Borrell, the high-ranking foreign policy representative in charge of EU foreign policy.
According to Borrell, the asset freeze and visa ban in the sanctions would include 351 members of the Russian House of Representatives who asked Putin to approve the independence of the two regions of Donbas, Ukraine, and play a role in undermining or threatening Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence. It also said an agreement was reached to include as many as 27 individuals and organizations.
He added that the sanctions would also include banks that finance decision-makers in Russia and other businesses in the Don Bass region.
"This is not the end of the sanctions," Borrell said, adding that "diplomatic actions to avoid war will continue."
The new sanctions, which have been politically agreed upon by EU foreign ministers, will be formally adopted this evening at a meeting of EU member ambassadors in Brussels, Belgium.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the sanctions package would be finalized quickly, adding that the sanctions were aimed directly at the individuals and companies involved in the action.
The EU will also ban trade between the EU and the region in Donbass and will limit the Russian government's ability to raise funds in EU financial markets.
Commissioner von der Leyen said that Germany's decision to suspend the approval of the 'Nord Stream-2' gas pipeline project connected to Russia was the right decision.
(Photo = Getty Images Korea)