EU leaders: Economic sanctions against Russia to come into force on Aug 1

The sanctions target sectoral cooperation and [trade] exchanges with the Russian Federation, President of the European Council Herman van Rompuy and President of European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso on Tuesday said in a joint statement.

The new sanctions will affect Russia's oil sector, defense equipment and sensitive technologies, reports RIA Novosti. The 'black list' has been expanded to include the names of 8 people and 3 legal entities. The names will be revealed on July 30.

The EU leaders stress that the European Union is ready to llift the economic sanctions against Russia if Moscow acts to find solutions for the crisis in Ukraine.

Photo: Reuters