During a press briefing at the end of a meeting with Armenian Foreign Minister Ara Aivazian, the head of Russian diplomacy referred to the succession of sanctions against Moscow by members of the community bloc and other Western nations, including the United States.

The foreign minister stated that ‘the aggressive Russophobic lobby in the European Union is doing its job,’ although such a policy leads nowhere, he said, according to Sputnik news agency.

The United States, the EU and some Western allies have launched sanctions against Russia since March 2014, following Crimea’s reintegration after a referendum in which 96 percent of voters approved that option.

In March, the EU implemented unilateral measures against six Russian officials, after they were allegedly accused of violating human rights.

Faced with that decision, Moscow banned the entry into its territory of eight EU citizens and senior officials last week, including European Parliament President David Sassoli and the vice president of the European Commission for Values and Transparency, Vera Jourova.

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