Europe Union will tend to prolong economic sanctions against Russia after they expire in June 2017. Reuters reported that citing the sources among the European diplomats.
There are Sweden, Baltic States and Poland among those who want to prolong the sanctions. While Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Hungary, Spain and Bulgaria want to restore business connections with Russia.
‘We do not like sanctions’, the diplomat from one of these countries claimed in Brussels.
‘It would be a great loss for us in the business sphere. However we will stick together with the majority’, the diplomat added, noting that the sanctions are going to be prolonged.
One of the European officials noted that such decision needs unanimous support.
“First, we are going to prolong the sanctions caused by Crimea and the other, economical, should be extend after the European leaders’ summit in June. It can be influenced by two reasons: president’s elections in France and Trump’ – he said.
The edition notes that Marine Le Pen as the candidate in presidential elections in France stands out against the sanctions and if she wins in the second tour of election, France will block the sanctions’ extension.
Another source claims that there was some concern in the beginning of Trump’s presidency. Now it is more obvious that Washington’s position will differ too much from that of the EU.
According to another diplomat’s words, there is such possibility that relations between Washington and Moscow can get better.
‘The revision of the sanctions does not admit of doubt but who knows what is going to happen without the support of the USA’ – he said.
United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson assured the Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko during the telephone call that the USA supports the territorial integrity of Ukraine and is not going to rescind the sanctions against Russia until it implement the Minsk agreement and returns the Crimea under the Ukrainian control.
