US Imposes Visa Ban on 20 Ukrainian Officials

World | February 20, 2014, Thursday // 09:47
Bulgaria: US Imposes Visa Ban on 20 Ukrainian Officials The United States is the first nation to impose concrete measures against the Ukrainian regime. Photo by EPA/BGNES

The United States has imposed on Wednesday a visa ban on 20 Ukrainian officials and are considering further sanctions.

The Obama administration announced the measure as a reaction to the renewed unrest in Ukraine. It is presently unclear which officials are on the blacklist preventing them from travelling to the country, but according to the State Department it includes "the full chain of command responsible for ordering the violence last night".

During a visit to Mexico, the US head of state also declared that his country is monitoring carefully the situation and expects the Ukrainian government to show restraint and not resort to violence.

"There will be consequences if people step over the line", Obama added, quoted by the New York Times.

Across the Atlantic, foreign ministers of the 28 EU countries are to discuss the European response to the escalation of violence in Ukraine that led to the death of 26 people this week.

The New York Times has reported that European officials are in fact already working on the logistics of imposing sanctions ahead of the meeting.

Before the implementation of such measures, however, a visit of French, German and Polish FMs to Kiev is expected, as the three are set for talks with members of both the government and the opposition.

At the same time, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was the first European leaders to call for sanctions, stated that such measures will not be enough and underscored the importance of continuing the political process in Ukraine.

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Tags: United States, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Mexico, visa ban, Obama, German, French, Angela Merkel, State Department, sanctions, Kiev

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