Merkel Says EU Will Extend Russian Sanctions Over Ukraine Crisis
29 June 2016 - 2:40AM
Dow Jones News
BRUSSELS—German Chancellor Angela Merkel confirmed Tuesday night
that the European Union would extend economic sanctions against
Russia.
Citing an agreed cease-fire in Ukraine that has never gotten off
the ground, Ms. Merkel said that she and French President Franç ois
Hollande made clear to EU leaders in Brussels "that the extension
of the sanctions...is sadly necessary."
EU ambassadors agreed last week in principle to extend the
sanctions by six months, to the end of January 2017. The decision
was delayed because of Italian demands that it be discussed first
at the EU leaders meeting and a French requirement to run the
measures by its parliament.
It is expected that the formal rollover of the sanctions will
now happen in the coming days. "There's nothing stopping the
extension of the sanctions," Ms. Merkel said, following a meeting
of EU heads of state in Brussels on Tuesday.
In the end, there was only a brief discussions of sanctions at
the EU leaders meeting.
European Council President Donald Tusk has promised a broader
discussion of EU sanctions on Russia and EU ties with its eastern
neighbor for October.
Write to Laurence Norman at laurence.norman@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 28, 2016 21:25 ET (01:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.