MOSCOW, November 9. /TASS/. Russia proceeds from the assumption at this stage that the European Union and the United States' restrictive measures against Moscow have been imposed for long, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin said in an interview with TASS.

"We do not see any significant grounds for the lifting of sanctions by either the EU or the US so far. We proceed from the assumption that those restrictive measures have been imposed for long," he said.

"Therefore, we will continue to build our cooperation with foreign trade partners in such a way that they are not exposed to the negative impact of Western restrictions," Pankin added.