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New EU sanctions over Siemens turbines violate international law, Russian energy minister says

Russia said on Saturday the European Union's decision to sanction a Russian deputy energy minister over the delivery of Siemens' turbines to Moscow-annexed Crimea was politically motivated and illegal.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu at the Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg, Russia, on July 30, 2017.
Alexander Zemlianichenko | Reuters

The EU first imposed sanctions on Russia after the 2014 military annexation of Crimea from Ukraine. On Friday, it introduced additional measures in response to the delivery of Siemens' gas turbines to Crimea, which violated its existing sanctions.

"Interference in a dispute between two business entities is a direct violation of international legal norms," the Russian Energy Ministry said in a statement.

"The Russian Energy Ministry has no doubt that the EU took this decision based solely on political reasoning."

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