According to a secret European Union report, the economic and trade sanctions imposed on Russia for its responsibility in the Ukraine crisis would greatly impact Germany, which is the biggest economy in the continent. The confidential report, said the Telegraph, was prepared by the European Commission and was leaked to a local magazine.
The secret EU report warned that the sanctions imposed on Russia could slash German economy's forecast growth this year by one percent, which would effectively move the country closer to a downturn. The effect would also have grim implications for a weak eurozone, said the report.
The UK paper said the report is among the series prepared by Brussels that estimates the costs of sanctions imposed against Russia for each of the member states of the EU. The report has been distributed to governments in secret before Easter.
A European diplomat who has not been named by the Telegraph said, "Governments have since responded to help the commission draw up a balanced program of sanctions to ensure that particular countries, such as Germany, do not take on a disproportionate burden. This is very sensitive information of great interest to Russia and is top secret."
The report also considered the impact on three different scenarios that could happen on European economies as a result of the sanctions imposed on Russia. A second scenario cautioned that a ban on Russian imports and a freeze on Russian accounts in Europe could cause forecast growth this year to fall by 0.3 percentage points and 0.1 percentage points in the year 2015. Moreover, the report also said that long-term effects on the German economy will have serious implications.
On Monday, EU foreign ministers will be considering on whether it will add 15 more names and companies with Crimea links to the list of sanctions. The Telegraph said the move was a response to the latest events that had unfolded in eastern Ukraine this weekend.
