The European Union will continue to consider new rounds of sanctions against Russia, although debates in the bloc are getting tenser each time, European Council President Charles Michel said, Bloomberg reports.

“Each debate on sanctions is much more difficult than the previous one,” Michel said Thursday in an interview with reporters during a trip to Kyiv after he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. “We have good debates with President Zelenskiy, and I will brief my colleagues on what are the Ukrainian proposals and we will consult. I’m confident we will be able to strengthen the pressure on the Kremlin.”

Michel made the unannounced visit to Kyiv in part to help plan an EU-Ukraine summit scheduled for Feb. 3.

Zelenskiy had earlier called on the West to impose new sanctions against Russia's nuclear and missile industries.

Michel said that sanctions in general should be strengthened and more countries should be involved to confront Russia. He said EU countries should provide more tanks to Ukraine, but said he understood why this decision was more difficult for Germany.