Ukraine war: Sanctions against Russia failed to achieve goals, claims Moscow's UK ambassador
2 July 2024, 14:20 | Updated: 3 July 2024, 10:49
Sanctions imposed against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine have failed to achieve any of their aims, the country's ambassador has told Sky News.
Andrei Kelin was speaking to Sky News as an investigation by Sky's Ed Conway revealed glaring loopholes in the restrictions regime, which has allowed British companies - legally - to help keep Russian gas flowing and generate huge revenues for the Kremlin's war machine.
He defended the continued trade with Europe despite the heightened tensions, arguing "business is pure business".
Ukraine war latest: Attempt to 'overthrow Kyiv government' foiled
He also argued the supply of weapons by the West, including Britain, to Ukraine was "bad", as it perpetuated the conflict, which he claimed would be worse for Kyiv in the long-term.
Speaking to The World With Yalda Hakim programme, Mr Kelin said: "The goal of the sanctions was first of all to spoil (the) normal life of Russians so they will say that (Vladimir) Putin is wrong.
"The second point of sanctions was to damage the Russian economy as much as possible.
"The third point was to change the political personnel.
"So none of these goals have been reached by the sanctions."
Despite the backdrop of fraught relations, Europe still depends on Russia for around 15% of its gas, handing over around €10bn (£8.5bn) since 2022.
Read more on Sky News:
EU sanctions target Russian gas for first time
Russian oil still seeping into the UK
