Sanctions

President Obama indicated on June 8^th that he had convinced European leaders to maintain economic sanctions on Russia, even as U.S. officials concede the measures have done little to curb aggression by separatists in Eastern Ukraine.   A number of senior European officials and diplomats indicated that in the coming months the European Union is looking to roll over its broad economic and targeted sanctions against Russia.  White House officials said that Obama would consider imposing more sanctions.  “It’s important for Russia to understand that, should it continue to have further escalation in Ukraine, it could be faced with additional consequences,” the Deputy National Security Adviser, Ben Rhodes, said in a conference call with journalists on June 4^th.