The politicians who attended the Forum are not in the position to negotiate on the issue of EU restrictive measures. On March 10 the European Council extended until 15 September 2016 EU restrictive measures against 146 people and 37 companies, in view of the continuing undermining or threatening of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine (bit.ly/1SUhHZO), . Following the Foreign Affairs Council on 14 March 2016, the HRVP recalled that the implementation of the Minsk agreement is a key condition for any substantial change in the EU's stance towards Russia (bit.ly/22cDUNo), .