The European Union reacted to Russia's sanctions against eight EU representatives in a joint statement by the President of the European Council, the President of the European Commission, and the President of the European Parliament on the imposition of restrictive measures against eight EU nationals.
With this, the European Union condemned “in the strongest possible terms today's decision of the Russian authorities to ban eight European Union nationals from entering the Russian territory”.
“This decision is the latest, striking demonstration of how the Russian Federation has chosen confrontation with the EU instead of agreeing to redress the negative trajectory of our bilateral relations,” the statement reads.
The statement also noted that an akin action is unacceptable, lacks any legal justification and is entirely groundless.
Given that it targets the European Union directly, not only the individuals concerned, the EU reserves the right to take appropriate measures in response to the Russian authorities' decision.