https://www.site/2017-12-15/merkel_zayavila_chto_es_ne_nashel_dostatochnyh_osnovaniy_dlya_otmeny_sankciy_protiv_rf

Merkel says the EU has not found sufficient grounds to lift sanctions against Russia

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday that the European Union did not find sufficient grounds to lift anti-Russian sanctions. This is reported by Interfax.

“Sufficient progress was not made to lift the sanctions, there was a consensus that everything possible should be done to move the Minsk process forward,” she told reporters after the first day of the ongoing EU summit.

At the same time, Merkel admitted that "it was possible to avoid further escalation" in the situation in eastern Ukraine.

Earlier, European Council President Donald Tusk announced the extension of European sanctions against Russia.

“The EU has agreed to extend economic sanctions against Russia,” he tweeted.

A source in the EU Council told Interfax that the extension of restrictive measures is envisaged for six months and it will include the currently existing sectoral sanctions without additions.

A diplomatic source in EU institutions told Interfax on Thursday evening that the official extension of sanctions by the EU Council "in the coming days will be practically technical."

“No more discussions are expected. The member states will formally approve the act,” the agency’s interlocutor explained.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that the EU will lift sanctions against Russia after the reason for their imposition is eliminated - when Kyiv regains control over the Donbass. This, according to Reuters, the head of the German government said on Tuesday, August 29, at the annual summer press conference in Berlin.

"Sanctions will be lifted when the reasons disappear. Economic sanctions were imposed due to the situation in eastern Ukraine, in the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, where Kyiv lost sovereignty over its own territory," the chancellor said. As Merkel noted, if the truce in Donbass continues, then "on this basis it will be possible to make further political decisions," TASS reports. "If we can fulfill the Minsk agreements, then an opportunity will be created to lift the sanctions," the head of the German government added.

Angela Merkel also noted that on the eve of the same she said at a joint press conference with Macron. The heads of the two countries called on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to fully comply with their obligations under the Minsk agreements and maintain the ceasefire.

So far, the joint statement noted, the parties regularly violate the established regime in the disputed territory. Merkel and Macron expressed concern that the security situation in eastern Ukraine is not improving.

Merkel and with the previous President of France, Francois Hollande, made similar statements about the extension of anti-Russian sanctions. So, at the end of last year, Merkel and Hollande issued a joint statement in which they announced the need to extend sanctions against the Russian Federation due to insufficient progress in the implementation of the Minsk agreements governing the settlement of the conflict in Donbass.

For the first time, anti-Russian sanctions were introduced by the West in the spring of 2014 in connection with the crisis in Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea to the Russian Federation. Later, the package of restrictive measures expanded. At the end of June, the European Union again extended economic sectoral sanctions against Russia.

The sanctions include restricting access to international funding, as well as defense and energy cooperation. Russia is also subject to personal EU sanctions and restrictive measures against Crimea.

The Minsk agreements were signed in February 2015 by the heads of the Normandy Four countries (Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine). The document, in particular, provided for a ceasefire, the withdrawal of heavy weapons, the holding of elections in the Donbass and the legislative consolidation of the special status of the region. Moscow has repeatedly pointed out that Russia is not a party to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, but only a mediator in negotiations to resolve the situation.

Sanctions on Russia will be lifted as soon as Moscow agrees to end the conflict in Ukraine, but not before, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Tuesday.

The German leader said that the lifting of sanctions would be economically beneficial for both Russia and Germany. However, she argued, before these sanctions can be lifted and the benefits of their lifting can be felt, Moscow will have to stop its pressure on Ukraine.

“Ukraine does not have full sovereignty,” Merkel said Tuesday during her annual summer press conference in Berlin.

Russia has been under sanctions from the European Union, the United States and several other countries since 2014, when it supported pro-Russian and anti-government groups in the Donbass in eastern Ukraine, which led to a serious conflict and the annexation of Crimea, which was Ukrainian territory.

Since then, Merkel, along with the French leader, have been trying to convince Russia and Ukraine to comply with the terms of the ceasefire agreement under the Minsk agreements. These attempts are unsuccessful.

Context

Are sanctions against Russia necessary?

American Thinker 08/24/2017

Putin's counter-sanctions harm the Russians

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung 08/23/2017

US eyes on Russian gas

Yeni Safak 08/21/2017 “Together with the President of France, as well as with the help of the United States, we are working to find solutions (to the crisis in Ukraine) within the Normandy format,” Merkel said.

On Monday, during a joint conference with French President Emmanuel Macron, Merkel urged Russia to intensify efforts to end hostilities between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists. More than 10,000 people have already died as a result of these hostilities, and they are still the subject of a sharp conflict with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“In our joint statement released yesterday, we simply stressed that respect for the ceasefire agreement is of paramount importance,” Merkel said.

“If the Minsk agreements are respected, the demand for the lifting of sanctions on Russia will be met,” Merkel said. She also noted that this step would be "beneficial for both the Russian economy and the German economy."

The imposition of sanctions dealt a serious blow to the Russian economy, and also had a negative impact on a number of EU countries.

European Monetary Fund is a 'very good idea'

Merkel also took advantage of the press conference to set out her views on a number of key political issues ahead of Germany's national elections in September, which she hopes to win as chancellor for a fourth term.

She expressed support for her finance minister, Wolfgang Schaeuble, and backed his plans to set up a European Monetary Fund, calling them a "very good idea."

Schäuble has proposed transforming the Eurozone Financial Stabilization Fund, known as the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), into the European Monetary Fund in order to better control the region's financial stability. Schäuble argues that such a fund could create additional capacity to control national budgets.

“It could increase our stability and allow us to show the whole world that in the package of measures for the Eurozone we have all the mechanisms to effectively respond to unforeseen situations,” she told reporters.

After yesterday's meetings with Macron, Merkel also supported the French president's idea of ​​appointing a common finance minister for the eurozone countries, saying that this would allow "better coordination of budgetary and economic policies."

Germany's trade surplus is not so significant

Merkel took the opportunity to refute US President Donald Trump's allegations that Germany is manipulating the euro currency in order to achieve a large trade surplus.

“The euro exchange rate is not determined by me. If it is very low in the Eurozone, then it is easier for German exporters to sell their products on the world market. Every change in the euro exchange rate affects our ability to export and, of course, increases the pressure on our competitiveness.”

“I personally don’t see this trade surplus as particularly dramatic … and if the trade surplus is to decrease now, it will be one of the factors that we have no influence at all,” Merkel said.

The euro has traded higher against the dollar for most of the year, as the US currency has already fallen in value several times during Trump's tenure. On Tuesday, the euro broke the $1.20 mark for the first time since January 2015.

'Diesel' scandal causes 'disappointment', further talks to come

The scandal in Germany's auto industry, one of the country's largest exports, played a big role in Merkel's election campaign this year, and she vowed to impact manufacturers on Tuesday.

"There's a huge amount of frustration (in the auto industry) and it's not just me - you can see it in other people as well."

“There is, of course, a certain amount of anger,” Merkel said, referring to the scandal that some automakers manipulated engine emission test results.

She said there would be no return to “business as usual” for firms in violation, and promised to hold additional talks to bring order to the industry. However, she admitted that internal combustion engines, traditionally controlled by emissions testing, will remain the backbone of the automotive industry for decades to come, despite calls for cleaner alternatives.

The materials of InoSMI contain only assessments of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the editors of InoSMI.