Obama: US to keep anti-Russian sanctions until Minsk deal fulfilled

MOSCOW, Sep 5 (PRIME) -- The U.S. will not abolish sanctions against Russia until the Minsk agreements envisioning a ceasefire in southeastern Ukraine are fulfilled, President Barack Obama said at a news conference Monday.

The Minsk agreements are not being fulfilled and the two sides should use an opportunity over the next few weeks to finalize the document and define a sequence to implement the deal, Obama said.

In 2014, relations between Russia and the West deteriorated to their worse since the Cold War due to a military conflict in Ukraine. The West introduced sanctions against some Russian individuals and firms and further against the energy and banking sectors. In response, Russia limited food imports from some countries, including the U.S., the E.U., Canada, Australia, and Norway.

End