Putin: Russia–Europe relations to normalize sooner or later

NOVO-OGARYOVO, Moscow Region, Feb 17 (PRIME) -- Relations between Russia and Europe will normalize sooner or later, and there is no sense in connecting the sanctions with the settling of the Ukrainian situation, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday at a news conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

“There is no sense today to connect the abolishment of the E.U. sanctions with a full completion of the Minsk process, because, I repeat, this ball is not on the Russian side,” Putin said. “We are sure that relations between Russia and Europe will normalize sooner or later.”

Putin said this is the Ukrainian government that has to fulfill the Minsk agreements.

“As it is known, we have introduced only retaliatory measures in response to sanctions, which were on a unilateral basis introduced against Russia by the E.U. And it doesn’t depend on us when the E.U. will abolish them,” Putin said.

“We have heard and we hear today that this depends first of all on the fulfillment of the Minsk agreements. But I believe that any external observer can see today that the ball is on the side of the Ukrainian government. It is first of all them who have to fulfill these conditions of the Minsk agreements.”

Orban said he believed that the period of automatic prolongation of anti-Russian sanctions was over and everybody is interested in Russia and the E.U. finding a possibility to cooperate as soon as possible.

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