Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued this statement following U.S. Government confirmation of Russia’s firing artillery into Ukraine: 

“The confirmed firing of Russian artillery on Ukrainian military targets from inside Russian territory is an ominous escalation of the conflict.  These actions discredit all previous rhetoric from the Kremlin that it sought to de-escalate tensions and support peace in Ukraine.  The international community must act now–strongly and decisively–to impose significant costs on Russia.  The EU must impose further strict sanctions on individuals and key economic sectors.  We must impose costs sufficiently painful on Russia to force it to end its aggression and military support for the separatists.”

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