MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Bavarian Prime Minister Horst Seehofer on Sunday urged to rethink the mechanism of economic sanctions against Russia and deescalate tensions between Moscow and Berlin, in an interview to local media.

“Sanctions are doing enormous damage to the Bavarian economy and the national economy,” the coalition partner of German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Bild am Sonntag.

The European Union imposed sanctions on main Russian economic spheres – energy, defense and banking – after the start of the Ukraine conflict in spring 2014. In December, EU leaders extended them for 6 more months.

Seehofer said that Germany should reconsider the automatic extension of sanctions against Russia and urged Berlin to put an end to hostility in relations with Moscow.

“The sooner we abandon the Cold War rhetoric the better for Bavaria and also for Germany,” the Bavarian premier emphasized.

Seehofer first voiced concerns about the economic fallout of sanctions on the Free State of Bavaria in December. He is expected to raise this topic during his visit to Moscow on February 4 where he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.