RIA Novosti: The EU has approved the extension of economic sanctions against Russia

At the Jan. 24 meeting, the permanent representatives of the EU member states have decided to extend the term of economic sanctions against Russia imposed since 2014 for another six months (until the end of July 2024); the term has been prolonged several times since then, RIA Novosti reports, citing its EU source.

“Yes, this has been approved,” the EU official said.

As follows from the agenda of the meeting, the issue of the extension of sanctions, reading “EU Council decision on restrictive measures against Russia for the actions destabilizing Ukraine”, was considered an issue not requiring initial discussions and was approved automatically. 

The last time the term of such sanctions was extended was in late July last year.

The West has stepped up sanctions on Russia over its military operations in Ukraine. This has led to higher electricity, fuel and food prices in Europe and the United States. Putin stated earlier that the policy of restraining and weakening Russia is the long-term strategy of the West, while the sanctions have dealt a hard blow to the global economy.