Little Change On Russia Stance Following EU Foreign Min Meeting

There appears to be little significant change in the EU's policy stance towards Russia following a lengthy video conference between EU member state foreign ministers that concluded a short time ago.

• The EU ministers were joined by Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba for the videoconference. In a presser afterwards, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell stated that EU ministers had been shown evidence of over 150k Russian service personnel massing on the Ukrainian border.
• Borrell says that no new sanctions are due to come in immediately regarding the Ukraine situation or the continued ill health of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny, with Borrell stating regarding the latter that "The Russian authorities must grant him immediate access to the medical professionals that he trusts...Russian authorities are responsible for his safety and health, and they will be held accountable"
• While the EU has praised Ukraine's restraint in the current circumstances, there remains significant ambiguity in the bloc's stance, especially with regards to the future of the Nord Stream II gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. German gov't has said little except to confirm the project, much to the annoyance of Washington, D.C. President Biden is under significant pressure from Russia hawks in the GOP and his own party to tighten sanctions on those involved in the project.