The European Union announced, on Friday, that the sanctions imposed against European officials by Russia are unacceptable, unfounded, and directed against the entire European Union.
Brussels – Sputnik. The statement of the heads of three European institutions (the European Council, the European Parliament and the European Commission) stated: “We condemn in the strongest terms the decision of the Russian authorities to prevent 8 representatives of the Russian authorities from entering the European Union .. It is an unacceptable step that cannot be justified from a legal point of view, and it is not based on anything. Basis”.
The statement added: “This step is directed against the entire European Union, and not only against the aforementioned persons.”
The statement stressed that “the European Union reserves the right to take appropriate measures in response to the decision of the Russian authorities.”
It is noteworthy that the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharva, announced earlier this evening, Friday, that the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed over the head of the European Union mission to Russia, Marcus Ederer, a memorandum regarding the Russian response against the background of the European Union Council sanctions imposed on the second of March. / Last March against Russia.
The European Union’s foreign affairs official, Josep Borrell, recently confirmed that relations with Russia had reached “their lowest level”, calling on Moscow to implement its commitments and reduce tension in the region.
In a speech during the plenary session of the European Parliament, Borrell said, “Our relationship with Russia is weakening at a minimum due to recent events on the borders with Ukraine and for many reasons, including the diplomatic crisis with the Czechs and the issue of the opposition Alexei Navalny.”
It is noteworthy that relations between Russia and Western countries, led by the United States of America, and the countries of the European Union, deteriorated against the background of the Ukrainian crisis, the return of the Crimea to the motherland in March of 2014, and the West’s imposition of sanctions on Russia.