Ukraine crisis prompts EU to shake up stance on neighbours

European Union Foreign Policy Chief, Federica Mogherini, speaks at a news conference on the European Neighbourhood Policy in Brussels, March 4, 2015. REUTERS/Yves Herman

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union launched a review of the way it handles neighbouring nations on Wednesday after its policy of offering closer ties to former Soviet republics led it unwittingly into confrontation with Russia.

The EU's executive Commission also began work on a new immigration policy, which will offer expanded opportunities for legal migration as a way of reducing a wave of illegal migrants that has led to thousands of deaths in the Mediterranean sea.