The U.S. and E.U. are preparing new sanctions against Russia for annexing Ukraine’s territories, while the Pentagon sets up a new command to arm Ukraine, while the Kremlin demands an investigation of the "terrorist act" on the pipelines.
offers a digest of Western mass media at the end of the September 26–30 business week.
How the West reacts to the annexation of Ukrainian territories
The West has already responded to Putin's annexation of Ukrainian territory. Photo: Getty Images
The United States and its allies prepare new sanctions against Russia, as they announced both before and after Vladimir Putin’s claimed annexation of Ukrainian territories in the south and east of the country.
In particular, the U.S. and Europe announced new response plans aimed at increasing the military, diplomatic, and economic pressure on Russia, The Washington Post writes.
New sanctions are to be announced by the U.S. and European Union on entities both inside Russia and on the outside that contribute to its war against Ukraine. Moreover, the allies made commitments to ensure the continued flow of Western weapons to Ukraine and put pressure on nations that haven’t yet taken a stand against Moscow.
"The United States does not, and will never, recognize the legitimacy or outcome of these sham referendums or Russia’s annexation of Ukrainian territory," emphasized Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Russia faces more sanctions for the annexation of Ukrainian territory
The U.N. Security Council once again votes on Ukraine. Photo: Getty Images
American and European officials asserted that even the countries that have tried to stay aside from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would have a hard time swallowing the annexation.
Intolerance to Putin’s claims may be proved by a vote on a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning the annexations; however, it’s expected that Russia will veto it. Earlier, the U.S. stated that it would demand Russia’s expulsion from the Security Council, however, it hasn’t happened by far.
The West promises to be closely watching how countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Gabon and India would vote.
On Wednesday, September 28, the Pentagon also announced an additional $1.1 billion in U.S. military aid, while the E.U. presented a new draft of its eighth package of sanctions against Russia, including proposing a price cap on the global purchase of Russian oil and new export bans on the Russian purchase of European appliances.
The U.S. will never recognise annexation of Ukraine’s territory
Biden asserted that the U.S. would never recognize the annexation. Photo: Getty Images
The United States will never recognise Russia's attempt to annex territory in Ukraine, President Joe Biden has said, cited by BBC, speaking ahead of a speech from Vladimir Putin.
The so-called votes in staged referendums held at gunpoint have been widely condemned outside Russia as a sham.
Any annexation of a country's territory based on the use of force violates the U.N. Charter and international law, said U.N. Secretary General António Guterres, claiming that Russia’s actions were a "dangerous escalation" that "has no place in the modern world".
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also expressed his opposition to the planned annexation in a phone call with Putin.
Pentagon is creating a new command to arm Ukraine
The Ukrainian military will be trained by a new U.S. command. Photo: General Staff of the AFU
Meanwhile, the Pentagon plans to set up a new command to arm Ukraine, The New York Times writes.
The mission in Germany would streamline a training and assistance system created after Russia’s invasion.
According to the newspaper, the system would be placed under a single new command based in Germany that would be led by a high-ranking U.S. general.
A final decision is likely to be made in the coming weeks, senior U.S. officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
Just as the Pentagon has committed more than $16 billion in military aid to Ukraine, this step signals that the United States expects the war in Ukraine to persist for a long time.
The new command would report to general General Cavoli and carry out the decisions made by the Ukraine Defense Contact Group.The mission would be headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany. Much of the training of Ukrainian soldiers on U.S. weapons systems is already taking place there or nearby.
The command would oversee formal instruction at training ranges in Germany as well as technical support centers that have been set up in neighboring countries.
The Nord Streams: Russia alleges a terrorist attack, while Europe steps up the security of pipelines
Because of the blasts on the Nord Stream gas pipelines Europe enhances the protection of its infrastructure
Sergei Naryshkin, the director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), said the West was trying to cover up who carried out an attack on the gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea, Reuters writes.
The Kremlin demands an international probe, calling the rupture of Russia's Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines an international terrorist act.
Meanwhile, the pipeline incident has prompted European countries to step up vigilance over other critical infrastructure.
Thus, Poland's electricity grid operator announced checks on an undersea cable carrying power from Sweden that crosses the damaged Nord Stream pipelines.
There is also heightened focus on the Baltic Pipe, a project that will transport gas to the Danish and Polish markets and end-users in neighboring countries from October 1.
Norway, a major Russian rival on gas supplies, will deploy its military to protect oil and gas installations against possible sabotage. Germany's energy regulator also called for more protection for critical energy infrastructure.
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