German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that the European Union will lift sanctions against Russia after removing the reason for their imposition - when Kiev regains control over Donbass. As reported by Reuters, the head of the German government announced on Tuesday, August 29, at the annual summer press conference in Berlin.

"The sanctions will be lifted when the reasons disappear. Economic sanctions were imposed because of the situation in eastern Ukraine, in the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, where Kiev has lost sovereignty over its own territory," the chancellor said. As noted by Merkel, if the ceasefire in Donbass continues, then “on this basis, it will be possible to make further political decisions,” reports TASS. "If we can fulfill the Minsk agreements, then an opportunity will be created to lift the sanctions," added the head of the German government.

Angela Merkel also noted that the day before she said the same at a joint press conference with Macron. The heads of the two countries called on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to fully comply with their obligations under the Minsk agreements and to maintain compliance with the ceasefire.

So far, the joint statement noted, the parties regularly violate the established regime in the disputed territory. Merkel and Macron expressed concern that the security situation in eastern Ukraine is not improving.

Merkel and the previous French President Francois Hollande made similar statements about the extension of anti-Russian sanctions. So, at the end of last year, Merkel and Hollande issued a joint statement in which they announced the need to extend sanctions against the Russian Federation due to insufficient progress in the implementation of the Minsk agreements regulating the settlement of the conflict in Donbass.

For the first time, anti-Russian sanctions were imposed by the West in the spring of 2014 in connection with the crisis in Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea to the Russian Federation. Later, the package of restrictive measures was expanded. At the end of June, the European Union again extended the economic sectoral sanctions against Russia.

Sanctions include restricting access to international funding and defense and energy cooperation. Also, Russia is subject to personal EU sanctions and restrictive measures against Crimea.

The Minsk Agreements were signed in February 2015 by the heads of the Normandy Four countries (Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine). The document, in particular, provided for a ceasefire, the withdrawal of heavy weapons, the holding of elections in the Donbass and the legislative consolidation of the special status of the region. Moscow has repeatedly pointed out that Russia is not a party to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, but only an intermediary in negotiations to resolve the situation.

The sanctions against Russia will be lifted as soon as Moscow agrees to end the conflict in Ukraine, but not earlier, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday.

The German leader said that the lifting of the sanctions would be economically beneficial for both Russia and Germany. However, she said, before these sanctions can be lifted and the benefits of lifting them can be felt, Moscow will have to end its pressure on Ukraine.

"Ukraine does not have full sovereignty," Merkel said Tuesday during her annual summer press conference in Berlin.

Russia has been under sanctions from the European Union, the United States and several other countries since 2014, when it supported pro-Russian and anti-government groups in the Donbas in eastern Ukraine, which led to a serious conflict and the annexation of Crimea, which was Ukrainian territory.

Since then, Merkel, along with the French leader, have been trying to persuade Russia and Ukraine to comply with the terms of the ceasefire agreement within the framework of the Minsk agreements. These attempts are unsuccessful.

Context

Are sanctions against Russia needed?

American Thinker 08/24/2017

Putin's counter-sanctions harm Russians

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung 08/23/2017

US eyes on Russian gas

Yeni Safak 08/21/2017 “Together with the President of France, as well as with the help of the United States, we are working to find solutions (to the crisis in Ukraine) within the framework of the Normandy format,” Merkel said.

On Monday, during a joint conference with French President Emmanuel Macron, Merkel called on Russia to step up efforts to end hostilities between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists. As a result of these hostilities, more than 10 thousand people have already died, and they are still the subject of acute conflict with the Russian president Vladimir Putin.

“In our joint statement released yesterday, we simply stressed that compliance with the ceasefire is of the utmost importance,” Merkel said.

"If the Minsk agreements are respected, the requirement to lift sanctions on Russia will be fulfilled," Merkel said. She also noted that this step will be "beneficial for both the Russian economy and the German economy."

The imposition of sanctions dealt a serious blow to the Russian economy, and also negatively affected a number of EU countries.

European Monetary Fund - "a very good idea"

Merkel also took advantage of the press conference to present her views on a number of key political issues ahead of Germany's national elections in September, which she hopes to win as chancellor for a fourth term.

She expressed support for her Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble and supported his plans to create a European Monetary Fund, calling them "a very good idea."

Schäuble proposed to transform the financial stabilization fund of the Eurozone countries, known as the European Stabilization Mechanism (ESM), into the European Monetary Fund in order to better control the financial stability of the region. According to Schäuble, such a fund could create additional opportunities for controlling national budgets.

“It could increase our stability and would allow us to show the whole world that in the complex of measures for the Eurozone we have all the mechanisms to effectively respond to unforeseen situations,” she told reporters.

After yesterday's meetings with Macron, Merkel also supported the French president's idea of \u200b\u200bappointing a common finance minister for the Eurozone countries, saying that this would "better coordinate fiscal and economic policies."

Germany's trade surplus is not so significant

Taking this opportunity, Merkel denied claims by US President Donald Trump that Germany was manipulating the euro in order to achieve a significant trade surplus.

“It's not me who determines the euro rate. If in the Eurozone it is very low, then it is easier for German exporters to sell their products on the world market. Every change in the euro exchange rate affects our ability to export and, of course, increases the pressure on our competitiveness. "

“I personally don’t think this trade surplus is particularly dramatic ... and if the trade surplus decreases now, it will be one of the factors that we have no influence on at all,” Merkel said.

For most of the year, the euro has traded higher compared to the dollar, as the US currency has fallen in value several times during Trump's presidency. On Tuesday, the euro crossed the $ 1.20 mark for the first time since January 2015.

"Diesel" scandal caused "disappointment", further negotiations are coming

The scandal in Germany's auto industry, one of the country's largest export sectors, played a big role in Merkel's election campaign this year, and she promised on Tuesday to impact manufacturers.

"There is tremendous frustration (in the automotive industry), and it's not just me - you can see it in other people as well."

"There is, of course, a certain feeling of anger," Merkel said, referring to the scandal that has arisen over the fact that some automakers have manipulated the results of testing engines for emissions.

She said there would be no return to "business as usual" for the violating firms, and promised to hold additional negotiations to restore order to the industry. However, she admitted that combustion engines, traditionally controlled through emission testing, will remain the backbone of the automotive industry for decades to come, despite calls for cleaner alternatives.

InoSMI materials contain assessments exclusively of foreign mass media and do not reflect the position of the Inosmi editorial board.

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Merkel said the EU did not find sufficient grounds to lift sanctions against Russia

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday that the European Union did not find sufficient grounds to lift anti-Russian sanctions. It is reported by "Interfax".

“There was not enough progress to lift the sanctions, there was a consensus that we must do everything possible to move the Minsk process forward,” she told reporters after the first day of the ongoing EU summit.

At the same time, Merkel admitted that “it was possible to avoid further escalation” in the situation in eastern Ukraine.

Earlier, European Council President Donald Tusk announced the extension of European sanctions against Russia.

"The EU has agreed to extend the economic sanctions against Russia," he tweeted.

A source in the EU Council told Interfax that the extension of the restrictive measures is envisaged for six months and that it will include the currently existing sectoral sanctions without additions.

A diplomatic source in EU institutions told Interfax on Thursday evening that the official extension of sanctions by the EU Council "in the coming days will be practically technical."

“No more discussions are expected. The member states will formally approve the act, ”the agency's source explained.