Global Courant
The European Union’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, said that the ‘weaker’ Russian President Vladimir Putin is, the more he would pose a “greater risk”.
Borrell made the comments after the rebellion by the Russian mercenary group Wagner sparked the biggest political crisis in decades in nuclear-armed Russia.
“A weaker Putin is a bigger risk. So we have to be very aware of the consequences,” said Josep Borrell.
“Until now we looked at Russia as a threat, because it was very powerful and the power was used in Ukraine. Now we have to look at Russia as a risk because of internal instability,” Borrell told reporters.
Putin faced his biggest challenge since he came to power in 1999 after Wagner’s boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin, led an uprising last weekend.
The head of the EU, Ursula von der Leyen, said that the rebellion would lead to a “counter-strike” and insisted that it was “important that they redouble support for Ukraine, be it military capability or financial support”, reports AFP.
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg noted the “fissures and divisions” in Russia exposed by the actions of the Wagner mercenary group, but he warned that it was “too early to make any final assessment”.
Stoltenberg added that he expects new announcements of military support for Ukraine during a NATO meeting next month in Lithuania.
Borrell also said that Europe should support Ukraine in the long term, supporting the country “during the war and beyond”.
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