WASHINGTON, August 5 (RIA Novosti) – US sanctions against Russia have not yet led to any changes in Moscow’s policy on Ukraine, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement.
“There are a range of indications that highlight the impact that this sanctions regime has had on the economy. In terms of its impact on the calculus of the [Russian President Vladimir] Putin regime, as it relates to their activities in Ukraine, we have not seen the kinds of actions that we would like to see,” Earnest said.
“Again, we would like to see Russia not engage in the kind of destabilizing activities along the Ukraine border that have led to that escalating conflict. And we would like to see them use their influence with the Russian separatists to abide by a cease-fire agreement and pursue a diplomatic resolution. We’d like to see the Russians take the necessary steps to close their border to the transfer of heavy weapons. But we haven’t seen the kinds of concrete steps that we’d like to see,” the spokesperson noted.
Earlier in July, the United States and the European Union announced new economic sanctions against Russia amid the Ukrainian crisis. Moscow has repeatedly called such measures counterproductive and stressed that Russia was not one of the sides of Ukrainian conflict.
Last week, Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama had a telephone conversation and agreed that sanctions are not meeting interests of either of the two countries.
