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US Tillerson to Russian FM: Sanctions to remain in place until Moscow reverses actions that triggered them
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson stressed the need for progress toward full implementation of the Minsk agreements as he met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today in Washington.
As reported by Censor.NET citing the U.S. Department of State, the counterparts discussed a range of issues including Ukraine, Syria, and bilateral concerns for more than an hour.Tillerson and Lavrov discussed the importance of defeating ISIS, de-escalating the violence in Syria, and ensuring that humanitarian assistance reaches hundreds of thousands of civilians throughout the war-torn country.
Additionally, the secretary and the foreign minister restated support for the U.N.-led political process in Geneva, which is central to international efforts to bring about an enduring resolution to the conflict.
On Ukraine, Secretary Tillerson stressed the need for progress toward full implementation of the Minsk agreements. Sanctions on Russia will remain in place until Moscow reverses the actions that triggered them, he said.
The United States and Russia agreed to continue discussions to resolve other issues of bilateral concern, including strategic stability.
In 2014, the European Union, the United States and several other countries imposed sanctions against Russia following its occupation of Crimea and aggression in eastern Ukraine. These restrictive measures were repeatedly extended and expanded. In particular, the talks on visa waiver and a new basic agreement on cooperation were suspended; several Russia's officials were banned to travel to the EU while their assets were attached. Trade, financial, and military restrictions were introduced.
The sanctions list included a total of 151 individuals and 37 entities. The sectoral sanctions were imposed against 20 Russian financial, oil-producing and defense companies.
