EU working with Turkey, China to support sanctions against Russia

The EU is working with Turkey, China and the Persian Gulf countries so that they support sanctions against Russia and wouldn’t contribute to "bypassing" these restrictive measures, European Commission spokesman Peter Stano told journalists, Report informs referring to RIA Novosti.

He was commenting on the question of how effective EU sanctions are in conditions when many other states, in particular Turkey and China, do not support them.

Countries that are EU partners play an important role in exerting pressure where they have such an opportunity, Stano said at a briefing in Brussels.

He added that the EU welcomes the role of Turkey, which has taken on the role of a mediator by organizing a meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia and Ukraine. Turkey plays its role in this as a partner and as a member of NATO, the European representative explained.

The EU is working with other mentioned countries, in particular, with the states of the Persian Gulf, Stano added.

He noted that the EU is striving to create a united front at the international level to isolate the Russian leadership and stop the military operation in Ukraine.

Commenting on the issue of possible sanctions against China for not joining the restrictive EU worlds, he said that the issue of imposing sanctions is within the competence of the Council of the European Union and EU member states.