MEP Harms says EU should continue its policy of sanctions against Russia

Co-Chair of the Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance in the European Parliament and MEP Rebecca Harms has said that Russia's actions in the east of Ukraine contradict the provisions of the Minsk agreements.

She told Interfax-Ukraine on Tuesday that separatist "elections," their interpretation in Russia, as well as reports of the arrival of new military convoys from Russia in Donetsk region, were a sign of a low level or complete lack of respect for the Minsk agreements.

She noted that the presence of heavily armed military during the vote in the so-called "presidential" and "parliamentary" elections in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics was reminiscent of the scenario recorded in Crimea this spring.

In this regard, Harms said that the EU should continue its policy of sanctions against Moscow.

She said that there was an inevitable and urgent need for the EU to unanimously continue a strategy towards Russia based on economic sanctions.