Russian sanctions may cause higher inflation, energy prices: EU official

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - Sanctions on Russia may cause higher inflation and energy prices in Europe, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis said Wednesday.

"Europe's sanctions will naturally have implications and a cost for the EU economy. At this stage, they are difficult to calculate reliably," he said at a news conference.

"As deeper sanctions begin to bite, we could see a number of scenarios. For example, higher inflation, more pressure on energy prices, an adverse impact on financial markets. Growth will continue but it will clearly slow," he said.

Dombrovskis said it is important to keep fiscal policy coordinated across the EU and added high-debt member states should begin to rebuild their fiscal buffers gradually.

Dombrovskis emphasized that Europe is ready and it has the ability to withstand any negative effect from the war between Russia and Ukraine.

He also vowed that Europe will continue to put maximum pressure on Moscow as long as it refuses to halt its aggression.