Biden warns Poroshenko that EU could begin to drop Russian sanctions

Certain EU member-states could begin to remove sanctions against Russia if the Ukrainian government doesn’t pursue political and economic reforms more actively, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden told the Council of Foreign Relations in New York on Sept. 21. “We know that if they give an excuse to the EU, there are at least five countries right now that want to say ‘we want out’ of sanctions against Moscow,” he said, as reported by the Reuters news agency. He added, “There’s an overwhelming instinct in Europe to say, ‘Hey, before [Poroshenko] become president, this was owned by Russia anyway. They had a puppet there. What difference does it make? What the hell’s difference? Why are you making us engage in these sanctions?”

The EU is in a crisis of self-doubt caused by the United Kingdom’s referendum to leave the bloc and the Syrian migration crisis, said Biden, adding that he warned Poroshenko to do enough to make sure that any failure of the Minsk accords is not blamed on Ukraine. “I’ve been the guy on the back of Ukrainians – which was a thoroughly corrupt system when they came in – making the case that, ‘You have to understand: everybody’s willing to blame the victim, and you better straighten up and fly right’,” Biden said.

Biden’s comments came a day after he met with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko at the United Nations, stressing reforms in Ukraine’s energy and justice spheres, while at the same time confirming that conditions had been met for a third U.S. sovereign loan guarantee of up to USD 1 bln, Reuters reported.

Zenon Zawada: We’ve been warning of this possibility for months with such legislation being submitted for review in France. There’s an isolationist wave in the West that will face its next test in the U.S. in November. We think a possible election of Donald Trump as U.S. president could turn the tide towards removing sanctions for the annexation of Crimea. Though that will face resistance in the U.S. Congress, his Russia détente rhetoric will provide the grounds for skeptical Europeans to begin to relinquish on sanctions.

The situation with reforms is similar to what it was in the first year of the Poroshenko presidency. They are moving in the right direction, but very slowly and without a systemic framework. Some hope is being placed in young ministers like PM Groysman and Agrarian Minister Taras Kutoviy, who have promised progress. But not enough observers are convinced yet.