MOSCOW, September 10 (RIA Novosti) – Russia will retaliate should additional sanctions from the European Union against the country be approved, the speaker of Russia’s lower house of parliament said Wednesday.
"At this moment (ceasefire in Ukraine) Brussels has nothing better to do than declaring the next anti-Russian sanctions. What kind of response are their authors expecting? A response from Russia? The answer will certainly follow. We have warned our partners in advance,” Sergei Naryshkin told journalists.
On Monday, the EU finally agreed upon a new batch of sectoral sanctions against Russia, but postponed their coming into force so that they could examine the implementation of the ceasefire agreement and peace plan in Ukraine. On Wednesday, EU ambassadors will meet in Brussels to decide whether or not new sanctions will be imposed against Russia.
“There is one purpose – to once again issue an encouraging message to the authorities in Kiev,” Naryshkin speculated.
“If this is indeed the case, the European Union has assumed a large share of responsibility for the possible disruption of the truce and for any consequences that may follow,” he warned.
Relations between Russia and the West have deteriorated as a result of the ongoing situation in Ukraine. In late July, the EU and the United States shifted from issuing sanctions against individuals to measures targeting entire sectors of the Russian economy. In response, Russia imposed restrictions on food imports from the countries that have imposed sanctions, namely the United States, the EU member states, Canada, Australia and Norway.
