Western sanctions do not help to de-escalate Ukraine crisis: Russian official

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Western sanctions against Russia are not helping to de-escalate the situation in Ukraine, state-run Itar-Tass news agency quoted Russia's envoy to the European Union as saying on Friday. "These sanctions do not help (reaching) the main goal - to de-escalate the situation in Ukraine and resolve the Ukrainian interior political crisis," he said. The West imposed new sanctions on Russia earlier this week, for the first time targeting sectors of the economy. (Reporting By Alexei Anishchuk, editing by Elizabeth Piper)