Greek foreign minister repeats criticism of EU over Ukraine

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias stoked a brewing row with European partners over sanctions against Russia on Thursday, saying Athens would not be pushed into agreement because of its impending debt negotiations. Just days after taking office, the leftwing government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has been embroiled in a dispute with European partners after it complained that an EU statement on the crisis in Ukraine had been issued without its consent. He said some European Union partners had tried to present Greece with an unacceptable fait accompli by issuing the statement without its agreement. "Anyone who thinks that in the name of debt Greece will renounce its sovereignty and its active participation in European policy making is making a mistake," he said in a statement issued as European Union foreign ministers met on the Ukraine issue in Brussels. Earlier German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said the debate on the Russia and Ukraine issue had not been made easier by the attitude taken by the new Greek government. (Reporting by George Georgiopoulos)