The European Union intends to impose sanctions on allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin in March, possibly ahead of the EU summit.

As a senior EU diplomat told Reuters, he expects additional sanctions to be imposed before the EU summit in March.

EU foreign ministers are scheduled to meet on March 22.

The meeting of EU ambassadors showed broad support for sanctions, with countries including Sweden, Germany, France, Poland, and the Baltic states calling for a travel ban and an asset freeze.

The sanctions must be introduced as soon as possible, otherwise their influence will be weakened, a second senior EU diplomat noted.