BRUSSELS, (Sputnik) – The European Union has lost approximately 21 billion euros (around $24 billion) because of sanctions imposed against Russia over the Ukrainian crisis, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said Monday.
"Sanctions have cost all of us dearly; the EU has lost 21 billion euros at this point. In Spain, we have suffered in agriculture and tourism," Garcia-Margallo said before a meeting of heads of European Union foreign ministries.
Last week, western media reported that on Monday, EU foreign ministers will expand the anti-Russia sanctions list by adding another 19 Russian and Ukrainian officials and nine organizations.
The internal conflict in Ukraine has become a major point of contention between Russia and the West. The European Union, the United States and a number of allied nations have imposed several rounds of restrictive measures against Russia, aimed at weakening the country's defense, banking and energy sectors.
In response, Russia instituted a one-year embargo on food from the United States and Europe, banning imports of meat, fruit, vegetable and dairy products.
