Italy Against Automatic Extension of Anti-Russia Sanctions

Italy is against automatic extension of sanctions against Russia and believes that such decisions should be made following detailed assessments and EU discussions, Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Friday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Relations between Russia and the West deteriorated amid the 2014 crisis in Ukraine. The European Union, the United States and their allies have introduced several rounds of anti-Russian sanctions since the reunification of Crimea with Russia in 2014, accusing Moscow of meddling in the Ukrainian conflict.

Moscow has repeatedly refuted the allegations and responded with an embargo on food products from the countries that have sanctioned it.

Despite contradictions between Russia and the West, Moscow and Rome have maintained cooperation in various fields. Italian officials, including Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and Gentiloni have repeatedly stated that the anti-Russia sanctions had a negative impact on the Italian economy.

"Italy's stance is as follows. We cannot allow ourselves to let this become a bureaucratic practice, allow [sanctions] to be automatically renewed. It is necessary to evaluate the implementation of the Minsk agreements as a whole and to hold EU discussions on this basis," Gentiloni said following talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.