Russia to respond to extended EU sanctions: Kremlin

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - Moscow will respond to the EU's decision to extend sanctions on Russia for the period of next six months, Kremlin spokesman said Wednesday.

“Nobody has abolished the principle of reciprocity,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by the agency.

The remarks came shortly after the EU extended economic sanctions on Russia in a view of the continued "lack of full implementation" of the Minsk agreements aiming to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

"The sanctions target the financial, energy and defence sectors, and the area of dual-use goods. They include an export ban on arms and goods that can be used for military ends in Russia," according to the statement issued by the EU.

"These sanctions do not target the Russian population but aim to change Russia's policy towards Ukraine," it added.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexey Meshkov said on Wednesday that the sanctions are "counterproductive", according to Russia's official TASS news agency.

Ukraine has been wracked by conflict since March 2014 following Russia’s annexation of Crimea after an illegal independence vote.

This followed violent anti-government protests which led to the overthrow of then-President Victor Yanukovich.

The UN General Assembly later voted to proclaim the Russian annexation illegal.

Along with many UN countries, the U.S., the EU, and Turkey also do not recognize Crimea as Russian territory.