TMTPOST -- Western sanctions imposed on Russia due to its military actions in Ukraine are unlikely to be lifted in the near future, according to Andrei Kostin, CEO of Russia's second-largest bank, VTB, in an interview with Reuters. "I don't really believe that the sanctions will be lifted quickly. I don't see how that is possible. A good example is the Jackson-Vanik amendment. It was enacted against the USSR, and it was only repealed in 2012," Kostin explained, referring to the law from the Cold War era that conditioned trade relations with the Soviet Union on the emigration rights of religious minorities. Kostin also expressed doubt that Russia’s frozen foreign exchange reserves, held in the West since the Ukraine conflict began, would be returned. "In the West, they say, let's pay for the reconstruction of Ukraine from the reserves. And they will draw up such a bill that even the reserves will not be enough," Kostin predicted.