Liz Truss discusses moving away from Russian oil and gas
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The Foreign Secretary told the UK’s Western allies they must increase the supply of weapons given to Ukraine and introduce further sanctions on the Kremlin after Vladimir Putin’s troops committed grave atrocities against civilians. Ms Truss also said Britain will “not rest” until the butchers of Bucha have been brought to justice.
She even warned the UK will be “taking the maximum approach” on sanctions and claimed “nothing is off the table”.
The South West Norfolk MP issued the demand during a visit to Poland in which she spoke alongside her Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba.
Mr Kuleba also suggested measures introduced by the West needed to go further.
He said: “Half measures are not enough.
“I demand from our partners, on behalf of the victims of Bucha and the people of Ukraine, to take the most severe sanctions against Russia this week.”
Ms Truss said the UK and its allies have a “responsibility” to step up support for “our brave Ukrainian friends”.
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She added: “That means more weapons and more sanctions.
“Putin must lose in Ukraine.
“Later this week, the G7 foreign ministers and the NATO foreign ministers will meet.
“We need to announce a tough new wave of sanctions.
“The reality is that money is still flowing from the West into Putin’s war machine – and that has to stop.”
The Foreign Secretary confirmed she would be working with the UK’s allies to go further in banning Russian ships from Western ports and cracking down on Russian banks.
She also vowed to go after new industries which have been “filling Putin’s war chest, like gold” and to agree to “a clear timetable to eliminate our imports of Russian oil, gas and gold”.
Ms Truss went on to say the UK will send weapons to Ukraine, including Javelin surface to air missiles and starstreak anti-aircraft systems.
The UK had announced it will phase out Russian imports of oil on March 8 in a move which Boris Johnson described as “another economic blow to the Putin regime”.
But now Ms Truss wants the United Nations Human Rights Council to suspend Russia following strong evidence it has committed war crimes during its invasion of Ukraine.
Germany, a nation which previously came under pressure for opposing Russia’s exclusion from SWIFT before being forced into a U-turn, has said the Brussels bloc must work towards severing economic ties with Moscow.
However, Berlin has also claimed it is not possible to immediately boycott Russian gas.
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The European Union has unveiled plans to phase out Russian fossil fuels by 2027.
In comparison, the UK plan would see Britain ban Russian oil imports by the end of 2022.
While Ms Truss demonstrated the UK’s “unwavering” support for Ukraine, she said: “Together, we will not rest until Putin fails and Ukraine prevails.”
Ms Truss’ new warning comes after mass graves had been discovered in areas of Ukraine where Russian forces have recently been withdrawn.
Boris Johnson said the discovery was “sickening”.
The Prime Minister added: “The UK will not stand by whilst this indiscriminate and unforgivable slaughter takes place.
“We are working to ensure those responsible are held to account.
“We will not rest until justice is done.”
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