EU, US Expand Sanctions Against Russia

The US and EU have widened the list of sanctions against Russia targeting individuals as well as financial institutions and defense companies, Wednesday.

The US has issued sanctions against major banks including Gazprombank, defense firms and energy companies including Rosneft, the BBC reports.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was quoted as saying sanctions would take US-Russia relations to a "dead end".

Following the EU summit on Wednesday, the European Council requested that the European Investment Bank (EIB) "suspend the signature of new financing operations in the Russian Federation." European Union Member States will coordinate their positions within the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Board of Directors with a view to also suspending financing of new operations, the EC official statement says.

The EC has condemned the continuation of illegal activities by armed militants in Eastern Ukraine and has urged the Russian Federation to work for minimizing the flow of weapons and militants across the border, in order to achieve a rapid deescalation.

The EU claimed that it would announce details of the new sanctions by the end of July, but added that its investment banks would no longer fund Russian projects.

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