Russia imposes new sanction on Ukraine over EU deal

PanARMENIAN.Net - Russia is tightening trade sanctions on Ukraine in retaliation for Kiev's sanctions and its EU free trade deal, BBC News reports.

Russia will apply new tariffs to Ukrainian exports from January 1, when the free trade deal takes effect.

Earlier Russia announced a ban on imported Ukrainian food - also from January 1 - because Ukraine blacklisted many Russian banks, defense firms and airlines, in line with EU sanctions.

Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014 triggered wide-ranging EU sanctions.

The EU has decided to extend the sanctions for another six months - until mid-2016 - because the Minsk peace deal, aimed at settling the eastern Ukraine conflict, will not be fulfilled as was envisaged by the end of this month.

The sanctions were ratcheted up after pro-Russian separatists seized a large swathe of eastern Ukraine and declared independence from Kiev in 2014. Russia has sent heavy weapons and troops to help them, Western leaders say - something that Moscow denies.

The US and some other Western countries also imposed sanctions on Russia, which retaliated by banning most imported Western food and drink.

Separately, the Russian government said on Monday it would take legal action over Ukraine's failure to repay a $3bn (£2bn) debt.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk said Russia had refused to restructure the debt, unlike other foreign bondholders who had done so.

He also called the debt - incurred in December 2013 - a "political bribe" from Moscow to former President Viktor Yanukovych, who was facing mass street protests at the time. Yanukovych fled to Russia in February 2014.