Vladimir Putin believes that the normalization of relations between the EU and Russia will take place. The Russian President" said about it after the meeting in his residence with the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban.
Linking EU sanctions to Ukrainian crisis settlement is unreasonable as Russia-Europe relations will return to normal sooner or later, Putin said.

"Linking the lifting of sanctions by the European Union to the completion of the Minsk process is meaningless today, because, I repeat, the ball is not in Russia"s court. But we are taking it easy in regard to this process, we are certain that it will happen sooner or later — the normalization of relations between Russia and the European Union," Putin told reporters.

Hungary"s Prime Minister hopes that this year the European Union will no longer be able to continue the sanctions automatically, because the European countries want to restore cooperation with Russia.