European Parliament labels Russia a terrorist state

• European Parliament designates Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.
• The move is largely symbolic, as the European Union lacks legal framework to back it up.
• EU has imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine.

The European Parliament designated Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism on Wednesday, claiming that its military strikes on Ukrainian civilian targets like energy infrastructure, hospitals, schools, and shelters violated international law.

European lawmakers approved a resolution designating Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.

The move is largely symbolic, as the European Union lacks a legal framework to back it up. At the same time, the EU has imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine.

The European Parliament’s decision enraged Moscow.

“I propose that the European Parliament be designated as a sponsor of idiocy,” wrote Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Telegram.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy applauded the decision of the European Parliament.

“Russia must be isolated and held accountable at all levels in order to end its long-standing policy of terrorism in Ukraine and around the world,” he wrote on Twitter.

Zelenskiy has urged the US and other countries to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, accusing its forces of targeting civilians, a charge Moscow denies.

Despite resolutions from both chambers of Congress urging him to do so, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has so far refused to list Russia.

The United States State Department currently lists four countries as state sponsors of terrorism: Cuba, North Korea, Iran, and Syria, which are subject to a ban on defence exports and financial sanctions.

According to the European Parliamentary Research Service, the parliaments of four EU countries have so far designated Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Poland.

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