Russia, EU Avoid Discussing Sanctions Amid Chill in Ties – Russian Envoy

Russia’s envoy to the European Union said that Russia and the European Union have been avoiding discussing the bloc’s unilateral sanctions against Moscow which have been a major stumbling block in their relations.

BRUSSELS (Sputnik) — Russia and the European Union have been avoiding discussing the bloc’s unilateral sanctions against Moscow which have been a major stumbling block in their relations, Russia’s envoy to the European Union said Monday.

"We have never initiated debates with the EU on this subject, we are not asking to lift sanctions – let alone begging to do that," Vladimir Chizhov said at the 9th Europe-Russia Forum in the European Parliament in Brussels.

In 2014, the European Union imposed economic sanctions against Russia’s key industries – energy, defense and banking – to put pressure on Moscow after its reunification with Ukraine’s Russian-majority former Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

Chizhov accused Brussels of toeing Washington’s line, saying that European Union’s "unilateral restrictive measures" were "the ultimate stumbling block to our cooperation with the EU."

Top Russian officials have repeatedly branded the Western sanctions inefficient, arguing that they do more harm to European economies than to Moscow.