Official: Russian govt may prolong food import ban by August

SOCHI, May 30 (PRIME) -- Proposals to prolong Russia’s ban on food imports from the E.U., the U.S. and some other countries until the end of 2017 are ready and the government may make a decision on this issue by August, Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich told reporters Monday.

“(Proposals from ministries) are actually ready. We are formalizing the documents. As (Prime Minister) Dmitry Anatolyevich (Medvedev) has said, we will apply with this proposal to the government,” he said.

Russia doesn’t plan to expand the list of countries covered by the ban, he also 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.

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