EU leaders to discuss possibility of improving relations with Russia during summit in October
The EU leaders will review the state of their relations with Russia and whether it will be possible to improve them during the upcoming summit, which will be held between the 20th and the 21st of October, as reported by Reuters.
This issue was put on the agenda after a number of EU member countries started to express growing irritation with the economic sanctions against Moscow, which were imposed by Brussels due to Russia’s role in the crisis in Ukraine. However, according to Reuters, the sanctions against Russia will most likely remain in force, in particular those related to the accession of the Crimea to Russia.
According to the Reuters, a number of journalistic investigations have recently shown that European companies, including German retailer Metro and French retailer Auchan, have conducted business in the Crimea, despite the sanctions regime. However, there are five countries that are skeptical about the issue of the extension of sanctions against Russia. Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Slovakia and Hungary are eager to get back to doing business with Russia, which is a major supplier of the EU's gas. One of the reasons for this is to assist in compensating for the slow pace of economic growth in Europe.
“The extension of sanctions is becoming increasingly difficult. However, it could still be done, if the key skeptics could be convinced that there are other elements in the EU's policy towards Russia and not just the sanctions,” a senior EU official said. In addition, another official predicts that the situation with the sanctions will remain in almost the same place as it is now. He added that none of the EU member states want to be the only country that has blocked the decision as it has to be made unanimously.