The Bloomberg news agency noted that the European Union is showing a diminishing tendency to strengthen the sanctions against Russia. The agency demonstrates the list of European leaders who have visited Russia in recent months, as well as those who are planning to visit it in the near future.
Among them are the visit of the Cypriot President and the Italian Prime Minister, respectively, and the upcoming visit of the Prime Minister of Greece to Moscow in April.
"Along with Hungary, Slovakia, Austria and Spain, the three countries were reluctant backers of economic curbs to protest at Russia’s interference with Ukraine," Bloomberg writes. "As a wobbly truce takes hold in eastern Ukraine, the anti-sanctions bloc will lay down a marker at an EU summit starting Thursday in Brussels."
Former British diplomat Ian Bond believes that the likeliest outcome is that "they will not agree to roll over the sanctions now and they will put off a decision until the last possible moment before the sanctions expire."
This view is shared by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia, Miroslav Lajcak. He believes "the right time to make this decision" is the next EU summit in June. "We are under no pressure and therefore we do not share the opinion that the sanctions should be extended now," Bloomberg cited the diplomat.
