#EU<br />#Russia<br />#BBCNews<br />The European Union placed its "strongest sanctions" yet on Russia, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called "essential and timely".<br /> <br />The latest EU measures, announced on Friday, included a ban on transactions related to the Nord Stream natural gas pipeline and lowering a cap on the price at which Russian oil can be bought.<br /> <br />They come as European allies hope to ratchet up the pressure on Russia to bring the three-year-long war in Ukraine to an end.<br /> <br />But former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, a close ally of Putin, said his nation's economy would survive the sanctions and that Moscow will continue striking Ukraine "with increasing force".<br /> <br />The EU sanctions are the 18th round of such measures since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022.<br /> <br />Subscribe here: http://bit.ly/1rbfUog<br /><br />For more news, analysis and features visit: www.bbc.com/news <br /><br />#EU #Russia #BBCNews
