BRUSSELS, December 9. /TASS/. European Union leaders will extend economic sanctions on Russia, set to expire in late January 2021, at the December 10 summit, a high-ranking EU official told reporters in Brussels on Wednesday.

"There will be a discussion regarding the implementation of the Minsk Agreements, based on which the sanctions are usually extended," he said, adding: "No one has opposed an extension of sanctions."

EU leaders are expected to make a political decision to extend the sanctions for another six months, and after that, a formal extension procedure will begin, concluding with the publication of the relevant documents in the Official Journal of the European Union.

In 2014, the European Union slapped sanctions on Russia over the events in Ukraine and Crimea’s reunification with Russia. Since then, these sanctions have been repeatedly extended and prolonged. Talks on the cancellation of visas and a new basic agreement on cooperation were put on hold, some Russian officials were prohibited from visiting EU countries and their assets were frozen. In addition, trading, financial and military restrictions were introduced. In response, Moscow banned food imports from EU states.