The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policies, Josep Borrell, reported that ten countries joined the package of sanctions and restrictive measures against seven high officials of the Nicaraguan regime, including two children of the presidential couple —Laureano and Camila Ortega Murillo—, as well as three institutions: the National Police, the Supreme Electoral Council (CSE) and the Nicaraguan Institute of Telecommunications and Post Office (Telcor).
These sanctions were approved by the European Union on January 10, 2022. The countries that joined this measure were Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Georgia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.
The sanctioned regime officials were Luis Ángel Montenegro, Superintendent of Banks; Nahima Janett Díaz Flores, director of Telcor; and three magistrates of the Electoral Power, Lumberto Ignacio Campbell Hooker, Brenda Isabel Rocha Chacón and Cairo Amador Arrieta.the latter president and vice president of the CSE, respectively.
Ortega’s speech justified aggression against Ukraine
Among the countries that join the restrictions approved by the European Council, Ukraine stands out, a country that is facing a crisis due to Russian threats to invade its territory. These attacks were endorsed and supported by Daniel Ortega, during his speech on the occasion of the 88th anniversary of the assassination of Augusto C. Sandino, national hero and symbol of anti-interventionism in Latin America.
“The step that President Putin took today to recognize those provinces (Donetsk and Luhansk) that are provinces that are populated by Russian citizens; I am sure that if they submit it to an election or a referendum there like the one they did in Crimea, I am sure that people there will even vote for annexation to Russia, which is what Crimea did: It returned to the situation in which it was was before the fall of the Soviet Union”, justified Ortega during his speech.
According to Ortega, the Ukrainian troops are looking for how to dominate the pro-Russian separatists, how to attack them and when Russia recognizes them, “logically this brings military support so that these governments have security.” However, in recent weeks the international community has denounced that Putin ordered the transfer of thousands of soldiers to the border, an invasion threat that Ortega recently described as a “battle for peace.”
“What (Putin) has done is recognize some republics that, since the 2014 coup, when the coup d’état took place in 2014, these republics that border Russia did not recognize the coup governments and they created their government there , they established their government, they have fought, they have given battle”, accused Daniel Ortega.
The Council of the EU, which brings together the member states, indicated in its January 10 statement that those sanctioned “are responsible for serious human rights violations, including the repression of civil society, support for fraudulent presidential and parliamentary elections , and the undermining of democracy and the rule of law” in Nicaragua.
Those sanctions were announced hours before Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo assumed their new mandate cAs president and vice president of Nicaragua, respectively, in votes without political competition and under the shadow of repression, persecution and zero transparency.
