All news

EU sanctions on Russia not likely to be lifted in spring — Merkel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel evaded answering the question whether the West’s restrictive measures have been effective
German Chancellor Angela Merkel EPA/VALDA KALNINA
German Chancellor Angela Merkel
© EPA/VALDA KALNINA

BERLIN, January 16. /TASS/. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she believes it is unnecessary to lift the West’s sanctions on Russia due to Russia’s economic situation

Moreover, the EU restrictive measures imposed because of the situation around Crimea are unlikely to be cancelled in spring, she said in an interview to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper published on Friday.

“The annexation of Crimea, which is a blatant violation of the principles of international law, and the events in eastern Ukraine are serious violations" (of G7 values), she said.

The European Union sanctions are valid for one year. “In spring, we will discuss the question of how to deal with the sanctions that we decided to impose after Russia's annexation of Crimea,” she said. “Given the current situation, they will remain in place.”

The chancellor evaded answering the question whether the West’s restrictive measures have been effective.