EU leaders agree to extend sanctions on Russia - diplomats

European Union leaders meeting in Brussels on Thursday agreed to extend their main economic sanctions against Russia for six months to the end of July 2020, four diplomatic sources told Reuters.

The bloc first slapped sanctions on Moscow after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and went on to back separatists facing off against Kiev in the industrial east of the country. Its economic sanctions target Russia's energy, financial and arms sectors and are currently in place until the end of January.

The leaders of Russia and Ukraine, in their first face-to-face meeting in Paris earlier this week, agreed to exchange all remaining prisoners from the conflict in east Ukraine by the end of the year but left thorny questions about the region's status for future talks.