Finnish PM hopes new sanctions against Russian short-dated

Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb said on Thursday that he hoped the new round of European Union (EU) sanctions against Russia will be short-dated.

The new sanctions on Russia could be cancelled within a month if rebels in Ukraine obey the ceasefire deal agreed last week, said Stubb at a parliamentary debate.

He explained that the EU will reconsider the situation in eastern Ukraine again by the end of September. He said he hoped that the EU could scrap the sanctions at that time.

Stubb told local media after the parliamentary debate that he predicted that the Russian countermeasures will come in a few days.

The EU agreed Thursday to put its new round of sanctions against Russia into force from Friday, increasing pressure on Russia despite signs that a ceasefire is taking hold in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Russia said on Thursday it will counter new sanctions imposed by the EU, calling the EU move short-sighted in view of the peace process in Ukraine.

"As we have already stated, these new anti-Russian sanctions will not be left without a proper reaction on our part," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement released hours after the EU adopted the new package of sanctions against Russia's financial and energy sectors.