Six non-EU countries have aligned with the European Council's decision to extend sanctions against Russia for its illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol.
“The Candidate Countries Montenegro and Albania, the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries Iceland and Norway members of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine and Georgia align themselves with this Council Decision,” reads the press release on the website of the Council of the EU.
They will ensure that their national policies conform to this Council Decision.
The European Union takes note of this commitment and welcomes it.
Sanctions were first introduced in June 2014 in response to Russia’s attempts to deliberately undermine Ukraine’s territorial integrity and destabilise the country. Other EU measures in place in response to the crisis in Ukraine include economic sanctions targeting specific sectors of the Russian economy and individual restrictive measures.
On June 18, 2020, the Council of the EU decided to renew the sanctions introduced in response to the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol by the Russian Federation until June 23, 2021.