Hollande During A News Conference At A European Union Leaders Summit In Brussels
France's President Francois Hollande is seen through a camera filter during a news conference at a European Union leaders summit in Brussels December 18, 2014. Reuters/Pascal Rossignol

France has joined in the fray of nations calling for termination of sanctions against Russia. French President Francois Hollande said it is time to lift the sanctions against Russia. His pronouncement came a day after Germany warned further sanctions against President Vladimir Putin's bailiwick risk stability of the European continent as a whole.

"If Russia has a crisis, it is not necessarily good for Europe," Mr Hollande told radio station France Inter. "I'm not for the policy of attaining goals by making things worse, I think that sanctions must stop now."

In the two-hour interview, Mr Hollande likewise revealed that Mr Putin doesn't desire to annex eastern Ukraine. "He told me that." Instead, he said what Mr Putin really wants is to "remain influential." Mr Hollande said Mr Putin told him all he wants is that Ukraine does not become a member of NATO, noting Mr Putin does not like the idea of placing an army at Russia's borders.

Western leaders are scheduled to meet for negotiations on Jan. 15 in Kazakhstan. Mr Hollande called on his fellow leaders to lift the sanctions if there is progress. Mr Hollande, however, did not specifically mention particular sanctions he thinks must be lifted, or if he is pertaining that all effective sanctions must be lifted as a whole. The sanctions, which began after Russia annexed Crimea in March 2014, were rallied on by the EU, the United States and Canada.

On Monday, Sigmar Gabriel, German Vice Chancellor and Economic Affairs and Energy Minister, warned slapping more sanctions against already crippled Russia will only result to a "more dangerous situation for all of us in Europe." This is because a number of EU nations are also dependent on Russia to keep their economy afloat. When Russia got cornered with the sanctions, it countered with a ban on imports of products from fellow EU nations, affecting the Netherlands, Germany and Poland in the process.

Gabriel believed the West is only after Russia because it is also a "superpower rival," by virtue of its nuclear possessions. Suffice it to say, the sanctions is a way for them to force Russia to its knees. But Gabriel believes such bullying can result to two things—either Russia diplomatically gives in and willingly cooperates to resolve the Ukraine crisis or uses its nuclear arsenal to prove its point.

Read: More Anti-Russian Sanctions Will Ultimately Cripple Europe—German Vice-Chancellor