BRUSSELS (Sputnik) — The leaders of the European Union's member states at the summit on Thursday decided to extend economic sanctions against Russia. However, the final decision that would fix what the leaders adopted should be made later.
22 June 2017, 19:34 GMT
EU sanctions targeting specific sectors of the Russian economy were imposed in July 2014 and are due to expire at the end of this July. On Wednesday, a source in the German government told reporters that the anti-Russian sanctions could be extended for another six months following the EU leaders' summit, which kicked off earlier in the day.
Moscow's relations with the West deteriorated rapidly following Crimea’s 2014 referendum on reunifying with Russia and the escalation of the Ukrainian crisis. The United States, the European Union and their allies accused Moscow of violating Ukraine's territorial integrity and interfering in the country’s internal affairs. Russia has consistently denied the allegations, pointing out that the policy of sanctions is counterproductive.
