EU nations urge new Russia sanctions

LONDON/WASHINGTON: Senior European politicians have raised the possibility of new sanctions against Russia to punish it for capturing three Ukrainian vessels at sea, an incident the West fears could ignite a wider conflict.

A Russian minister said further sanctions would solve nothing and the incident should not be used to derail the Minsk accord, which aims to end fighting in eastern Ukraine between Kiev’s forces and proRussian separatist rebels.

Russian assets have come under pressure on financial markets amid concerns that possible new sanctions could hurt the economy.

Russia opened fire on the Ukrainian boats and then seized them and their crews on Monday near Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014. Moscow and Kiev have tried to pin the blame on each other for the incident.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said yesterday he may cancel his scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in Argentina because of Russia’s clash with Ukraine.

In an interview with the Washington Post, Trump said he was awaiting a ‘‘full report’’ from his national security team about Russia’s capture of three Ukrainian naval ships. a

‘‘That will be very determinative,’’ Trump told the Post. ‘‘Maybe I won’t have the meeting. Maybe I won’t even have the meeting . . . I don’t like that aggression. I don’t want that aggression at all,’’ he said.

Trump is due to meet Putin on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, which convenesat the weekend.

The TrumpPutin meeting will cover security issues, arms control, and issues in the Middle East and Ukraine, White House national security John Bolton told reporters.

The US State Department urged European nations on Tuesday to do more to assist Ukraine in its standoff with Russia. — Reuters