Washington must understand that the decision about new US anti-Russia sanctions will certainly have repercussions – as was the case before – in areas that are not easily calculated by the overseas sanctions policy-makers.
Washington must understand that the decision about new US anti-Russia sanctions will certainly have repercussions – as was the case before – in areas that are not easily calculated by the overseas sanctions policy-makers.
Our colleagues in the US shouldn’t be surprised when they find further changes in the established reality of Russian-American relations, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said in interview with Interfax agency.
He marked: «Without waiting for Washington’s attempts to argue its case, I’d like to say in advance that we reject the predictable American attempts to represent their current actions as a clarification or a specification of the current sanctions rather than an extension, or as a method to prevent Russian circumvention of the earlier sanctions, that is, to reduce the matter to a less than articulate set of arguments. We will pull off any verbal wrappings that might cover their transparent desire».
According to his words Russia state that the essence of US policy is what it was before. «They would like to bring further pressure to bear on Russia through unsuitable methods. But these methods will not accomplish what Washington expects. We won’t even urge the US to influence, at long last, Kiev to fully implement the Minsk Agreements. We know that our appeals fall on deaf ears and we have come to the conclusion that this is Washington’s conscious political choice. But this choice is doomed to fail: the US will not get the results it wants», Ryabkov added.
Remember that the US announced an updated sanctions list targeting 34 individuals and entities in order to "pressure Russia" over the Ukraine crisis.
«To maintain the efficacy of existing sanctions, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today designated and identified dozens of individuals and entities under four executive orders (E.O.s) related to Russia and Ukraine. Today’s action is part of OFAC’s continued effort to counter attempts to circumvent these sanctions, to further align U.S. measures with those of its international allies, and to provide additional information to assist the private sector with sanctions compliance. “It is critical that Russia takes the steps necessary to comply with its obligations under the Minsk Agreements and to ensure a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine,” said John E. Smith, Acting OFAC Director. “By more closely matching our designations with those of our international partners and thwarting attempts to evade sanctions¸ we are once again demonstrating the United States’ unwavering resolve to pressure Russia to respect the security and sovereignty of Ukraine.” In today’s action, OFAC named 34 individuals and entities under Ukraine-related sanctions authorities. This includes 14 individuals and entities linked to those that have engaged in serious and sustained evasion of existing sanctions or are 50 percent or more owned by a designated entity; six separatists designated for threatening the security or stability of Ukraine; two former Ukrainian government officials for being complicit in the misappropriation of public assets and/or threatening the security or stability of Ukraine; and 12 entities for operating in the Crimea region of Ukraine. OFAC also identified a number of subsidiaries that are owned 50 percent or more by the previously-designated VTB Bank, Sberbank, and Rostec», the US Treasury Department said in a statement on Tuesday.
