The sanctions that the EU applies against the Russian Federation are targeted against Russian companies and those involved in actions aimed at undermining the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine, so such sanctions do not prevent the country from confronting the coronavirus epidemic.

This was announced on Monday by the representative of the European Commission Peter Stano, answering a question from journalists about the reaction to the appeal of a group of European Parliament deputies to the EU leadership with a request not to weaken sanctions against Russia under the pretext of combating coronavirus, Ukrinform reports.

“In general, the EU and UN sanctions regime provides an opportunity for humanitarian exemptions. But with regard to Russia specifically, the sanctions are directed against Russian companies and individuals associated with the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol, therefore these sanctions were introduced as a result of actions that undermine the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine. This means that these sanctions do not deter Russia from countering the outbreak of coronavirus, "

He confirmed that the EU leadership received a letter of this content from the deputies of the European Parliament, so the answer will be provided by? conventional channels.

At the same time, Peter Stano recalled that last Friday the High Representative of the EU, Josep Borrel, issued a declaration on behalf of all EU countries, which states that international sanctions should not impede the supply of important equipment and other supplies necessary to fight coronavirus and to deter it from. The same thesis was voiced during the virtual press conference of the EU High Representative last Friday after the informal EU Foreign Affairs Council, held in a video conference format.