text: ​EU Parliament wants to keep Russia sanctions, set ‘benchmarks’ for lifting them
  
  The EU Parliament has called for keeping sanctions against Russia in place, urging the EU to set certain “benchmarks” for lifting them, even as top European officials – including the EU's foreign policy chief – seek to restore cooperation with Moscow.
  
  On Thursday, the EU
  Parliament voted on a resolution urging the EU Council at its March
  meeting to “maintain current EU sanctions against Russia and
  approve 'benchmarks' for lifting them,” according to the
  legislative body’s press release.
  
  Among such benchmarks the resolution named “respecting the
  ceasefire, unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops and illegal
  armed groups, exchanging all prisoners and restoring Ukraine’s
  control over its whole territory, including Crimea.”
  
  However, Moscow has stated multiple times that there were and are
  no Russian troops in Ukraine, and that Russia has been fully
  committed to implementing the September Minsk documents.
  
  Political analyst Aleksandar Pavic says such “perfidious” tactics are
  nothing new and that since at least Yugoslavia in the 90s, the
  West has been pressuring adversary states into producing results
  of actions they didn't have full control of – and then punishing
  them for failing to do so.
  
  The EU body accused Russia of "aggressive and expansionist
  policy," and Ukraine’s eastern self-proclaimed republics of
  “terrorism and criminal behaviour.”
  
  The document voted on Thursday also suggested the EU Commission
  propose within two months a “communication strategy to
  counter the Russian propaganda campaign” which the
  legislative body claims is “directed at the EU, its eastern
  neighbours and Russia itself.”
  
  The bloc’s parliament added that in the events of Ukraine’s
  further destabilization, the EU Council should broaden sanctions
  to encompass Russia’s nuclear sector and international financial
  transactions.
  
  EU must restore cooperation with Moscow – EU foreign policy chief
  
  In contrast to the resolution, top EU officials have called for
  dialogue with Moscow to resume. At the plenary session of the
  bloc’s legislative body on Thursday, EU Foreign Policy Chief
  Federica Mogherini said that the EU must "think of restoring,
  partially, options and instruments for cooperation on rule of law
  and the judiciary with Russia."
  
  Earlier, German top government officials said that Moscow must be
  involved in the Ukrainian peace process. Additional sanctions may
  exclude Moscow from partnership in the resolution of conflicts
  which “will have very dangerous consequences for the entire
  world,” German Vice-Chancellor of Economic Affairs and
  Energy Minister Sigmar Gabriel said in an interview to a German
  paper earlier in January.
  
  Though there are some in the US and EU that "would like to
  floor their superpower rival,” it is not in the interest of
  Germany or Europe, Gabriel said. "Those who want it, provoke
  an even more dangerous situation for all of us in Europe,"
  he added.
  
  Meanwhile, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said last week that
  the sanctions on Russia could be lifted only if a ceasefire
  agreement is “fully” implemented.
  
  French President Francois Hollande has also discussed options for
  the sanctions to be lifted, saying in an interview with France
  Inter radio in January: “I think the sanctions must stop now.
  They must be lifted if there is progress. If there is no progress
  the sanctions will remain.”
  
  Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently
  pointed to the fact that in response to the
  establishment of the Minsk agreement – which included a ceasefire
  in eastern Ukraine – the EU pushed a new package of sanctions on
  Russia. In an interview with France 24. he added that he doesn’t
  believe sanctions will do any good for the EU.
  
  A European diplomatic source in Brussels told TASS on Thursday
  that at least seven countries of the 28-member European bloc
  currently support the lifting of Western sanctions on Russia –
  Austria, Hungary, Italy, Cyprus, Slovakia, France, and the Czech
  Republic.