Sweden welcomes Ukraine’s efforts to resolve the armed conflict in Donbas and believes that it’s time for Russia to take over the responsibility.

Prime Minister of Sweden Stefan Löfven said this at a joint briefing with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Wednesday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“We greatly appreciate the efforts Ukraine is making to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine and to reduce the impact of this conflict on people. Ukraine has demonstrated its commitment to compromise, and now it is Russia’s turn to take over the responsibility,” Löfven said.

He noted that Sweden supported a meeting in the "Normandy format", which he considered "the best way to achieve the expected result." Löfven also expressed hope that the "Normandy" meeting would help reduce the armed conflict in Donbas.

Answering the question whether Sweden will support the extension of sanctions against Russia at the Council of the European Union next week, the prime minister emphasized that the country's position remained unchanged. Since the sanctions were introduced for certain reasons, in particular because of the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine, and as long as the reasons for the sanctions exist, they will be extended.

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