European leaders stepped up pressure on Russia to accept an unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, threatening to immediately impose a new round of punishing sanctions if the Kremlin did not change its stance by the end of Monday.“The clock is ticking – we still have 12 hours until the end of this day,” the German govt spokesperson, Stefan Kornelius, said at a news conference.On Monday, the Kremlin spokesperson brushed off the threat. “The language of ultimatums is unacceptable – you cannot talk to Russia like this,” the spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told Russian news agencies. Russian President Putin has so far rejected an unconditional 30-day truce. French President Macron said, “Either Russia – Putin – is serious and wants peace, or it’s not serious and we have to impose even more sanctions.” Britain’s foreign secretary, David Lammy, told reporters in London that it was time for Russia to stop stalling.
