Archive: https://archive.is/2025.03.26-131710/https://www.ft.com/content/f5fee89e-be92-4ca3-9e3c-01078b8a2b64

Brussels has rejected Russia’s demand to lift EU restrictions on a key agricultural bank as part of a partial ceasefire deal, saying its sanctions regime will stay in place until the “unconditional withdrawal” of Moscow’s troops from Ukraine.

The European Commission statement on Wednesday came after the US said it had agreed a ceasefire with Russia and Ukraine, covering energy infrastructure and the Black Sea.

The Kremlin later claimed the agreement was dependent on dropping sanctions including those imposed on Rosselkhozbank, a bank involved in financing the production and export of food, and reconnecting it to the global Swift banking messaging system.