Russia believes the extension by the EU of its sanctions against the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol by a year is an attempt to punish the Crimean Peninsula’s residents who voted for reunification with the Russian Federation, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"These restrictions are nothing but an attempt by the European Union to punish the residents of the peninsula who made their free choice in favor of reunification with Russia during a referendum. We believe that any discrimination against Crimeans and Sevastopol residents for political or territorial reasons is absolutely inadmissible," TASS cited the statement as saying.
The ministry said that Crimea and Sevastopol are an integral part of the Russian Federation. "It’s time to accept it as a given fact, which can't be changed by methods of economic or political blackmail. Pressuring Russia through sanctions tactics has absolutely no future – it is wrong to expect that this will make us give up our national interests or principled position on key issues," the ministry added.
