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Anti-Russian sanctions

Sberbank CEO expects no dramatic consequences from sanctions extension

On Wednesday the European Union Council agreed to extend economic sanctions against Russia for another 6 months at the level of permanent representatives

Sberbank CEO German Gref Mikhail Japaridze/TASS

Sberbank CEO German Gref

© Mikhail Japaridze/TASS

ST. PETERSBURG, June 18. /TASS/. CEO of Russia’s top lender Sberbank German Gref does not expect dramatic consequences from extension of anti-Russia sanctions by the European Union, he said at St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on Thursday.

"We can already speak about it as a fact as it was expected. We passed the worst already last year so I don’t expect any dramatic consequences from extension of sanctions," Gref said.

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On Wednesday the European Union Council agreed to extend economic sanctions against Russia for another 6 months at the level of permanent representatives, a European source in Brussels told TASS. This decision now must be formally approved by the European Union Council at the level of Foreign Ministers. The meeting may take place on June 22.

In March, 2015 the European Union summit made a political decision to support sanctions against the Russian Federation until the Minsk agreements are implemented in full.

European economic sectoral sanctions against Russia include restrictions on lending for key Russian state-owned banks, defense and oil industry enterprises. In addition, the European Union imposed restrictions on weapons and military equipment supplies to Russia, as well as military technology and dual-use technologies, high-tech equipment and technologies for oil production. European restrictive measures did not affect the Russian gas industry.

Sanctions against Russia were imposed by the European Union on August 1, 2014 and were toughened in September and lightened in October, when under the influence of the credit restrictions against Russia European subsidiaries of Russian state-owned banks were partially withdrawn.

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