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Extension of EU Anti-Russian Sanctions 'Defeat' of European Diplomacy, MP Says

© Sputnik / Alexey Vitvitsky / Go to the mediabankEuropean Union flags in front of the European Commission headquarters in Brussels. (File)
European Union flags in front of the European Commission headquarters in Brussels. (File) - Sputnik International
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The decision to extend EU sanctions against Russia is a defeat for European diplomacy, senior Russian lawmaker Konstantin Kosachev said Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, European Council President Donald Tusk said the leaders of the EU member states decided to extend economic sanctions against Russia.

"[It is] another defeat of EU diplomacy in the Ukrainian direction. An initially incorrect perception of the situation led to an initially wrong approach toward its settlement… Today's decision will not bring anything new and especially constructive or creative in this situation [in Donbass] stagnated because of Kiev’s fault," the chairman of the upper house of the Russian parliament's international affairs committee said.

Kosachev added that the European Union succumbed to anti-Russian policy of Kiev, which was sabotaging the implementation of the Minsk agreements.

Relations between Russia and the EU have deteriorated with the escalation of the Ukrainian crisis, as western governments imposed economic sanctions on Russia, accusing Moscow of aiding independence supporters in eastern regions of the country. - Sputnik International
Final Decision to Extend EU Anti-Russia Sanctions May Be Made in June - Source
On Monday, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini said the sanctions expiring on July 31 were likely to be prolonged because there had been no real progress in the implementation of the Minsk agreements.

On Tuesday, the press materials related to the European Council meeting in Brussels on June 22-23 showed that German Chancellor Angela Merkel and France's President Macron were expected to inform the EU leaders on the developments of the issue at the meeting. This would lead to taking the official decision concerning the prolongation of the anti-Russia sanctions linked to the full implementation of the ceasefire deal shortly after the meeting.

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