EU announced freezing of negotiations with Russia on the new basic agreement and possibility of economic sanctions
The European Union decided to freeze the negotiations with Russia on a visa-free regime and the new basic cooperation agreement between Russia and the EU, declared Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council, on March 6.
He pointed out that if the situation in the Ukraine does not deescalate, and the Russian Federation refuses to start direct negotiations with Ukraine in the coming days, the EU will make decisions on additional measures like visa restrictions, assets freeze and cancellation the EU-Russia summit.
Furthermore, the European Union is considering the possibility of using economic sanctions against Russia.
French President Francois Hollande spelt out what would happen: «if Russia takes measures that destabilize Ukraine — to put it more simply — that jeopardize the Ukrainian sovereignty, then we will take further actions».