British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss
The West should not show signs of fatigue amid the Ukrainian crisis, UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in an interview published in Spain’s El Pais newspaper.
“There is a lot of support for Ukraine in Europe,” the foreign secretary said, “I spoke with ministers from the Group of Seven on Friday, and we all agree to give Ukraine all the support it needs and to strengthen sanctions against Russia.” “But in this crisis, the unity that has been shown has become very important,” she added, “I ask you to maintain it (unity – TASS) and not to show signs of fatigue or a desire to give in.”
According to Truss, NATO’s response to the situation around Ukraine “should be to increase its presence [in eastern Europe] and make it more permanent”. She also believes that Western troops “must prepare for all possible contingencies.”
“We cannot have an unconvenient peace with Russia’s continued presence in Ukraine,” the minister argued, “I believe that all of Ukraine’s territories have been illegally occupied. <...> Ultimately, this is about what Ukrainians want.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on February 24 that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation, after which the US, the EU, the UK, as well as some other states, imposed sanctions against Russian persons and legal entities.