European nations are preparing sanctions against Russia that will be much harsher than those imposed after the 2014 annexation of Crimea, Poland's prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday, Polsatnews reported.

"We are constructing a package of concrete sanctions, which are to be much stronger than those from 2014," Morawiecki said.

He said there was no awareness among EU leaders last November of the risks emanating from the eastern border. He added that he had spoken about these challenges with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel, among others.

"This is a great challenge, because today we are receiving new reports about the attack that is likely to occur in the coming days or in the coming week," Morawiecki said.

He said the EU is aware of not only the direct threat of Russia's neo-imperial policy, but also threats of a non-military nature - such as actual gas blackmail, disinformation, hacker attacks, cyber attacks on many EU countries.

He also said he called on partners to provide financial assistance to Ukraine.