The European Union plans to impose new sanctions on Russia on the occasion of the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ursula von der Leyen announced after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv. The President of the European Commission arrived yesterday in the Ukrainian capital together with 15 European Commissioners to discuss Ukraine's desire for EU membership. “Russia is paying a heavy price, as our sanctions are eroding its economy, throwing it back by a generation,” Ursula von der Leyen said. According to her, the Russian oil price cap of 60 dollars per barrel introduced at the beginning of December costs the country about 160 million euros per day. "With our partners from the G-7, we are going to introduce another price cap on Russian oil products," the president of the EC said.

In addition to the adoption of the tenth package of sanctions against Russia, Ursula von der Leyen also announced that an international center for the investigation of crimes in Ukraine will be opened in The Hague. "Russia is preparing its armed forces to take revenge, not only against Ukraine, but against a free Europe and the free world," Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky warned. He pointed that the dream of a peaceful Europe could be realized only with Ukraine and only if Russia was defeated.

"Those who try to involve the European countries, including Germany, in a new war with Russia and hope to defeat Russia on the battlefield do not understand that a modern war with Russia will be very different for them," Vladimir Putin said during his visit to Volgograd on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory of the USSR over Nazi Germany in the Battle of Stalingrad. He pointed out that German Leopard tanks were once again threatening his country. "We are not sending our tanks to their borders, but we have the means to respond. It won't be limited to the use of armoured vehicles. Everyone must understand this," Putin said.

"This means that Russia has a deep potential to respond and as new weapons are delivered by the collective West, Russia will activate this potential,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later commented.