Story highlights The Kremlin calls the sanctions "unfounded and illegal"

The situation in Ukraine reflects a broader tug of war between East and West

The sanctions were imposed a year ago

London (CNN) European Union foreign ministers meeting Monday in Luxembourg extended sanctions against Russia imposed because of the country's actions in Crimea and eastern Ukraine, an EU spokeswoman has told CNN.

The sanctions were imposed a year ago to punish Russia for its annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea and its military support for separatists in the eastern regions of Ukraine, which border Russia.

The sanctions consist of asset freezes on some Russian companies and people as well as travel bans against certain officials.

A Kremlin spokesman condemned the extension of the sanctions.

"Russia, naturally, considers these sanctions to be unfounded and illegal, and we have never been the instigators of sanction measures," the spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told journalists.

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