The European Union suffers more from its own sanctions than Russia. Cancelling the sanctions would demonstrate that Europeans are capable of resisting the pressure from the United States.
From the EU’s point of view, it is extremely odd to impose sanctions that affect European companies more than Russian companies.
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Western sanctions on Russia. You can see other examples of this narrative on the illegitimate and useless sanctions against Russia here and here.
According to the Washington Post, sanctions imposed on Russia after the Crimea annexation and Russian meddling in the US elections sapped Russian economical growth, including with a very modest growth despite the raise in hydrocarbon prices, the stagnation of salaries and growing inflation.
According to the report of the European Parliament, the decline of EU trade with Russia after 2013 can be attributed to a number of factors, most importantly the slump in international oil price which damaged Russian economy and devaluated the ruble. EU wide impacts of the export losses are estimated at less than 0,2% of total value added and employment. The potential total impact of the sanctions for the Russian economy are estimated at 8% to 10% GDP.
The Ukrainian side is involved in the catastrophe of the shooting down of MH17 over the Donbas.
The plane crash was followed by a phenomenally rapid reaction by the Ukrainian government. It is clear that President Poroshenko and his press service were informed in advance. The fact that the airspace over the war zone had not been closed is also an indication. Two high-ranking Ukrainian security officers were directly involved in the tragedy.
Conspiracy theory that the Ukrainian side was involved in the shooting down of MH17, with no evidence provided. An example on the many competing and contradictory stories promulgated by Russian state-controlled media on MH17.
The Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team has concluded that flight MH17 was shot down on 17 July 2014 by a missile of the 9M38 series, launched by a BUK-TELAR, from farmland in the vicinity of Pervomaiskiy (or: Pervomaiskyi). At that time, the area was controlled by pro-Russian fighters. The BUK-TELAR was brought in from the territory of the Russian Federation and subsequently, after having shot down flight MH17, was taken back to the Russian Federation.
Robert Mueller’s report found no trace of Russia’s interference in the 2016 US elections.
Recurring narrative on Russian interference in 2016 US elections.
Although Robert Mueller's investigation was concluded with no proof of Russian collusion with the Trump campaign, it did conclude that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. Mueller's report determined that there were "two main Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election".
The West has a powerful arsenal of interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states, which has become a serious threat to the international security.
All colour revolutions have the same ‘modus operandi’. The West provides informational and economic support to protesters and applauds the overthrow of governments by force, while bringing their puppets to power. Then a country that suffers from the coup becomes dependent on the outside, which ruins its economy, impoverishes the population and triggers crime and abuse.
Recurring pro-Kremlin narrative on the West or the US behind colour revolutions, with no evidence. It has been applied, among others, to Ukraine, to Venezuela and yellow vests protests, as well as to justify a deceiving narrative on the aggressive West, preparing new coups.
