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Russian PM: Heads of several European countries agree anti-Russia sanctions are calamitous

"No one has told me that sanctions are positive and bring good result among those I’ve recently met during negotiations, among heads of the EU and particular states and governments," Medvedev says
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev (left) and Austrian Vice-Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner Ekaterina Shtukina/Russian government's press service/TASS
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev (left) and Austrian Vice-Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner
© Ekaterina Shtukina/Russian government's press service/TASS

GORKI, February 3. /TASS/. The heads of a number of European countries and the European Union (EU) member-states agree that anti-Russia sanctions are calamitous, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said at a meeting with Austrian Vice-Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner on Wednesday.

"We think that [anti-Russian] sanctions do no good to everyone," Medvedev said. "Moreover, no one has told me that sanctions are positive and bring good result among those I’ve recently met during negotiations, among heads of the European Union and particular states and governments," PM said, adding that "everyone says it’s bad."

The two partner countries — Russia and Austria — have always had advanced economic relations, Medvedev said. "And we wouldn’t like to lose it even amid the current challenging economic situation," he added.

Also, the dynamics of relations between the two countries is diverse as the volume of investment has been maintained but the trade turnover has decreased, which the Prime Minister said is related both to the global economic situation and anti-Russia sanctions.