BRUSSELS
The European Union will cancel a planned June meeting with Russia, French President Francois Hollande announced on Thursday in Brussels.
“There will be a suspension of political relations [with Russia], because under current conditions the planned EU-Russia meeting cannot be held,” Hollande said upon his arrival to a two-day EU summit where further sanctions against Russia are to be discussed.
European members of the G-8 had already pulled out of preparatory talks for a meeting that was supposed to take place in Sochi, Russia.
On Monday, the EU Council approved visa bans and asset freezes on a list of 21 Russian and pro-Moscow Ukrainian officials.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of the Crimean parliament signed a formal agreement on the region's official annexation to Russia on Tuesday.
The move came after the strategic peninsula declared independence from Ukraine and opted to join the Russian Federation following a controversial referendum on Sunday in which 97 percent of voters backed the move.
englishnews@aa.com.tr
