The European Parliament passed its resolution on the situation in Ukraine at a plenary session in Strasbourg on Thursday.
The text of the resolution "calls on the EU to maintain its restrictive measures against Russian individuals and separatists and entities responsible for the destabilisation of the region, in particular at the upcoming Council meeting in March 2015, for as long as Russia fails to fully respect and deliver on its Minsk obligations, including in particular the full and unconditional withdrawal from Ukraine of all Russian troops, illegal armed groups, military equipment, militants and mercenaries, the permanent monitoring and verification of the Ukraine-Russian border by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission and the exchange of all prisoners, including Nadia Savchenko, and does not change its course of action in Ukraine; in the case of any further Russian actions destabilising Ukraine, invites the European Council to take up further restrictive measures, and broaden their scope by covering the nuclear sector and by limiting the ability of Russian entities to conduct international financial transactions.”
The parliament also “calls on the EU institutions to provide a strong and effective answer to the crisis, in which freedom, democracy, sovereignty, territorial integrity and the rule of law are neglected by Russia; acknowledges that a response based on appeasement would encourage Russia to expand the hybrid war tactics to other countries.”
The European Parliament resolution said the sanctions should be part of a broader approach of the EU to Russia and efforts by its high representative to strengthen dialogue.
The parliament also “recognises that, by providing support for Ukraine, the EU also ensures its long-term security; stresses that EU diplomatic efforts must be coupled with a determination to de-escalate the conflict while remaining firm on European values; recognises that the EU must be ready to support bordering Member States, which should be given the same level of security as all Member States.”
At the same time, the European Parliament said that the political and diplomatic channels in relation to Russia must remain open in order to allow for a diplomatic solution to the conflict, and that MEPs support the Geneva and Normandy formats of talks.
