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Italy vows ‘strong’ EU action over Ukraine

Italian Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini on Monday vowed the EU would agree on a "strong" response to the crisis in Ukraine, which escalated last week with the deaths of 298 people on board a downed passenger jet.

Italy vows 'strong' EU action over Ukraine
A man walks among the wreckage of the Malaysia Airlines jet in eastern Ukraine. Photo: Alexander Khudoteply/AFP

Ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers tomorrow, Mogherini said she expected a “coordinated, united and strong” response to the Ukraine crisis would be agreed upon.

Her statement comes four days after a Malaysia Airlines flight was shot down over rebel-held territory in Ukraine, killing all 298 passengers and crew on board. The US and European powers have pinned the blame on Russia, a charge strongly denied by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

SEE ALSO: Tributes paid to German victims of MH17

EU foreign ministers are expected to discuss further sanctions against Russia at Tuesday’s meeting, just six days after European leaders agreed to take economic measures against Moscow.

Mogherini said she foresaw there being “no great differences” between European powers on the matter, adding that she has invited her Ukrainian counterpart to the meeting.

Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin has been asked to “update us on the situation on the ground, on the recovery of bodies and observers’ access” to the crash site, Mogherini was quoted by Ansa as saying.

Ukrainian authorities recovered 192 bodies over the weekend and loaded them onto a refrigerated train, although the government said on Sunday its departure was being blocked by rebels.

SEE ALSO: OSCE: 'Didn't receive proper access to site'

With Italy holding the EU presidency, Mogherini is tasked with getting consensus on the response to the Ukraine crisis. The foreign minister however faced accusations last week of being too close to Russia, following a visit to Moscow earlier this month.

The debate came to the fore as Mogherini was nominated by Italy to become the EU’s next foreign policy chief. After hours of negotiations in Brussels, however, leaders failed to agree and will meet again next month to decide who will take the top job.

READ MORE: Ukraine tragedy hits Mogherini's Ukraine hopes

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RUSSIA

Russia announces no New Year’s greetings for France, US, Germany

US President Joe Biden, France's Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will not be receiving New Year's greetings from Russian leader Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said on Friday.

Russia announces no New Year's greetings for France, US, Germany

As the world gears up to ring in the New Year this weekend, Putin sent congratulatory messages to the leaders of Kremlin-friendly countries including Turkey, Syria, Venezuela and China.

But Putin will not wish a happy New Year to the leaders of the United States, France and Germany, countries that have piled unprecedented sanctions on Moscow over Putin’s assault on Ukraine.

“We currently have no contact with them,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

“And the president will not congratulate them given the unfriendly actions that they are taking on a continuous basis,” he added.

Putin shocked the world by sending troops to pro-Western Ukraine on February 24.

While Kyiv’s Western allies refused to send troops to Ukraine, they have been supplying the ex-Soviet country with weapons in a show of support that has seen Moscow suffer humiliating setbacks on the battlefield.

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