A record EU antitrust fine of 4.3-billion-euro ($4.5 billion) imposed on Google seven years ago punished the tech giant over its innovation, the Alphabet unit told Europe's top court on Tuesday, as it asked judges to scrap the EU decision.

Google accused European Union antitrust watchdogs of blundering their way through a probe that culminated in a record €4.3 billion ($4.5 billion) fine for allegedly abusing the market power of its Android mobile-phone ecosystem.

The regulator ruled that Google had unfairly used its dominance to strongarm device manufacturers and network operators into making sure that traffic on Android devices went to its own search engine.

European Union foreign ministers have agreed to begin lifting sanctions on Syria, but insist that the measures should be reimposed if they see any abuses by the country’s new rulers.

European Union foreign ministers have agreed on a roadmap to ease sanctions on Syria, the bloc's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Monday. "While we aim to move fast, the lifting of sanctions can be reversed if wrong steps are taken,