Sanctions against Russia not an end in itself, says Croatian FM

Croatia believes the sanctions against Russia are not an end in itself but should lead to a peaceful solution to the conflict in Ukraine, Foreign Minister Vesna Pusic said in Brussels on Thursday.

"Croatia's position is that the sanctions are not an end in itself, but to arrive from war conflicts and low-intensity conflicts to solutions through negotiations and to the implementation of the Minsk agreement," Pusic said upon arriving at an extraordinary meeting of European Union foreign ministers.

The meeting was convened because of the escalating conflict in Ukraine and will discuss the extension of the sanctions against Russia because they are soon to expire and the possibility of introducing new ones and adding more names to the list of individuals subject to the sanctions.

Asked to comment on statements that the new Greek government was distancing itself from the common position, Pusic said one had yet to see how the Greek government's representatives would behave in EU bodies. "Only then will I be able to evaluate their position."

(Hina) ha

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