The European Union should gradually
phase out sanctions imposed against Russia over the Ukraine crisis if there is
substantial progress in the peace process, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter
Steinmeier was quoted on Sunday as saying.
His comments reflect divisions within Germany's ruling right-left coalition over policy towards
Russia. Steinmeier's Social Democrats (SPD) back a more conciliatory stance
towards Moscow than Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc.
Merkel has repeatedly said that sanctions imposed
against Russia can only be lifted once the peace agreement to end the conflict
in Ukraine is fully implemented, not only partially.
Steinmeier struck a different tone. "Sanctions
are not an end in themselves. They should rather give incentives for a change
in behaviour," he told the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland, a network of
local newspapers.
The minister said he was in favour of lifting
sanctions gradually if the Russian government showed it was doing its part in
implementing the Minsk peace plan for Ukraine, adding: "An all or nothing
approach, even if it sounds good, doesn't work."
Steinmeier rejected criticism that he was acting like
an "advocate for the Kremlin".
"We must still be able to have a joint reflection
if we want to find solutions for other big conflicts," Steinmeier added,
pointing to the civil war in Syria where Russia is actively backing President Bashar
al-Assad against various rebel groups.
On Friday, the European Union extended for a year a
ban on business dealings with the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which Russia
annexed from Ukraine in 2014 in a move that has not been internationally
recognised.
In addition, the bloc is expected this week to extend
until the end of 2016 its broader economic sanctions on Russia over its role in
the crisis in Ukraine.
In a separate interview published this weekend
Steinmeier criticised NATO's decision to stage military manoeuvres this month
in eastern Europe, warning that such moves could worsen tensions with Russia.
(Reporting by Michael Nienaber; Editing by Gareth
Jones)
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