<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>Foreign Affairs Minister José Manuel Albares called on the European Union this Monday to increase its pressure on Russia to accept a ceasefire, as the ballistic missile attack carried out this Sunday against the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumi, which killed more than 30 civilians, demonstrates President Vladimir Putin's "lack of will" to move toward peace.</strong></h4> "The time in Ukraine for peace and a ceasefire is becoming increasingly urgent, and it is urgent that President Vladimir Putin and Russia respond to this request for an unconditional ceasefire, which President (Ukrainian Volodymyr) Zelensky has put on the table and to which Russia has not responded for several weeks," Albares declared in Luxembourg at the end of a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council (FAC). Putin "yesterday demonstrated his lack of willingness to move forward with a ceasefire that could be a first step toward a just and lasting peace," Albares denounced. "Therefore, we have on one side Ukraine, which wants peace, and on the other a Russia that indiscriminately attacks civilians, in what is a flagrant violation of International Humanitarian Law," he insisted. "Europe, and I expressed this at the Council meeting, must stand even more behind Ukraine, and together with Ukraine, we must ensure aid so that it can continue defending its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and we must use all the means and pressure we can to ensure that, once and for all, Russia abandons its war of aggression," Albares warned. In the minister's opinion, after the ceasefire proposed by Ukraine through the United States, "we are back where we were, but with much greater clarity." “On one side, Ukraine, accepts an unconditional ceasefire that has been on the table for several weeks, and on the other side, we see how Russia, with delaying tactics, is stalling, although I believe we already had a very clear response yesterday with those two ballistic missiles that killed innocent civilians on such a significant day in Ukraine as Palm Sunday,” he warned. “Given all this, we all have to do everything in our power to ensure that peace, which must be a just peace, a lasting peace, a peace that respects Ukraine's sovereignty and takes into account Europe's collective security, arrives as soon as possible,” and, to achieve this goal, “sanctions are, without a doubt, one of the ways,” he declared. Regarding whether the United States should consider sanctions against Russia, Albares clarified that he cannot "speak on behalf of the United States government," but, "on behalf of the Spanish government, and I have conveyed this and virtually all of my European colleagues shared the same opinion," he can defend the need to "redouble efforts to put pressure on Russia to accept this ceasefire." Hours earlier, José Manuel Albares wrote on social media that "Russia is continuing its strategy of terror by firing two ballistic missiles at the city of Sumi. Another cruel massacre of civilians in Ukraine." The message was responded to by his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha: "Thank you, dear José Manuel Albares, for consistently supporting Ukraine with words and actions." "We need European unity and strength to counter Russian terror, and I am sure we have you and Spain on our side," he added. <h5><strong>Palestine</strong></h5> Regarding the Middle East, Albares called on the European Union to deliver "on time and without major conditions" all planned funding to both the Palestinian National Authority and the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, "in the face of the humanitarian catastrophe currently taking place in Gaza and the West Bank." "I have insisted that it must be delivered on time and that it must be at least the same amount as last year," he added. The European Commission announced this Monday a new aid package of €1.6 billion for the Palestinian Authority until 2027 to alleviate the effects of the war in Gaza and the West Bank and to manage the humanitarian crisis. "Let us bear in mind that the Palestinian National Authority is facing extraordinarily difficult circumstances and is carrying out its reforms very meticulously, under enormous pressure," Albares warned. Therefore, the European Union "should not add further pressure; on the contrary, what it should do is help the Palestinian National Authority," he added.
