EU extends Russia sanctions on Ukraine 'failures'

The European Union has extended economic sanctions against Russia for a further six months for what it called Moscow's failure to comply with its commitments to an agreement aimed at reaching peace in Ukraine, the European Council said on Monday.

In a statement, the European Council said the sanctions that target sectors of Russia's economy would remain in place until at least the end of January next year.

The sanctions were initially introduced in July 2014 over the conflict in eastern Ukraine and Crimea's reunification with Russia.

Under the measures, 15 Russian companies with broad state participation in the oil, banking and defense sectors have been targeted.

According to Russian state news agency Tass, the sanctions also include visa restrictions against Russian citizens in Europe, limits on access by Russian banks and other companies to EU capital markets, while outlawing financial assistance to Russian financial institutes.

In the latest action, the EU is targeting Russia's imports and exports of defense equipment, as well as limiting the country's access to "sensitive technology" for oil production.

The restrictions have been repeatedly expanded and prolonged.

In response to the EU's longstanding sanctions, Moscow has banned imports of a number of food products from EU countries.

EU leaders had agreed to extend the sanctions at a summit held via videoconference on June 19, according to the Reuters news agency. After a short discussion, they concluded that full implementation of the Minsk agreements had not yet been achieved, the European Council said in a statement.

The first of those agreements, signed by the leaders of Russia, Belarus, Germany, France and Ukraine in 2015, was designed to bring peace to eastern Ukraine after Crimea was incorporated into Russia in March 2014 following a local referendum.

Minsk agreements

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after the videoconference that the course of the implementation of the Minsk agreements on settling the conflict in Ukraine makes it impossible to lift the EU's anti-Russian sanctions.

Alongside these, the EU's sanctions against Crimea include a ban on imports of any Crimean goods to the EU and on any European investments in the territory of Crimea as well as Sevastopol, including in property, financing businesses and the provision of services, such as tourism.

European vessels are prohibited from entering Crimean ports and aircraft are barred from landing at Crimean airports, with the exception of emergency situations.

Exports of goods and technologies in the fields of transport, telecommunications, energy sector, oil production and oil refining and natural resources are prohibited to Crimea, as well as the provision of any technical services to companies operating in these sectors.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had earlier called for an easing of the sanctions pressure amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"We called for lifting the sanctions off those countries that had suffered even before the coronavirus epidemic and it is absolutely inhumane to keep these illegal, illegitimate unilateral sanctions in place amid the pandemic," Lavrov said.

The EU's statement on Monday also included sanctions imposed on 11 Venezuelan officials and lawmakers for hindering the opposition led by Juan Guaido.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has ordered the head of the European Union mission in Caracas to leave the country within 72 hours.