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Spain suffers big economic losses due to Russia sanctions — foreign minister

Trade between Russia and Spain declined considerably over the Ukraine developments and the European Union’s stance

MOSCOW, March 10. /TASS/. Sanctions against Russia have caused a serious damage to Spain's economy, the Spanish foreign minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said on Tuesday.

"We have big losses, especially in the agricultural sector," he said.

According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, trade between Russia and Spain declined considerably over the Ukraine developments and the European Union’s stance.

The Russian-Spanish relationships are "living through an uneasy period" in the context of the Ukraine developments and Brussels’ position, Lavrov said.

"Our interaction in a whole number of areas has been suspended. Trade turnover is falling considerably. Tourist exchanges are not gaining from this situation, although they have always been a visiting card of Russian-Spanish cooperation," Lavrov added.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Spanish counterpart Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo have not discussed the issue of easing food embargo for Spain at today’s talks.

Answering a question on whether the foreign ministers considered the possibility of introducing a special regime of easing food embargo, like in a situation with Greece, Lavrov said: "No. The issue was not discussed."

The minister did not provide any further comments.

Earlier, Russian Economic Development Minister Alexey Ulyukayev said Russia will look for ways to ease food embargo for Greece and Hungary that are in line with the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO).