KIEV — Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko said fresh European Union sanctions against Russia that took effect on Friday highlighted the level of European solidarity with his country in its confrontation with Moscow and pro-Russian separatists.
Earlier, the 28-nation EU published a new round of sanctions that included restrictions on financing for some Russian state-owned companies and asset freezes on leading Russian politicians.
"I never felt before this level of solidarity," Poroshenko told a conference in Kiev, also citing the pledges of support he received at a NATO summit in Wales last week.
"I feel myself a full member of the European family."
Poroshenko also said he hoped the parliaments of Ukraine and the European Union would be able to synchronise on September 16 their joint ratification of an association agreement that enshrines closer economic and political ties between his former Soviet republic and the EU.
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