MOSCOW (AP) — European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker is coming to Russia next month in what would be the most high-profile EU visit since Russia annexed Crimea two years ago, but both sides are downplaying the prospects of a more meaningful diplomatic thaw.
Like the United States, the European Union has effectively frozen ties with Russia and imposed sanctions after its 2014 seizure of the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine. Only a handful of European leaders have visited Moscow since, including Greek and Cypriot officials last year and Austria’s president and Hungary’s prime minister this year.
Russia’s sanctions-struck economy contracted by nearly 4 …read more
Source: KXAN
