"The lifting of sanctions is certainly not an end of itself for Russia. It is not even a strategic goal where it would be necessary to sacrifice something, especially in the field of security," Kosachev told RIA Novosti.
US President-elect Donald Trump said in a Monday interview with the Times that US sanctions against Russia could be lifted in exchange for a bilateral agreement on reduction of nuclear arms.
Kosachev said he would not equate Trump's words to a "formal proposal" yet.
"I would not link these two issues and make the lifting of sanctions the subject of bargaining in such a delicate field as nuclear safety," Slutsky said in a statement published by his press service.
US President-elect Donald Trump said in a Sunday interview with The Times and Bild that US sanctions against Russia could be lifted in exchange for a bilateral agreement on the reduction of nuclear weapons.
Slutsky's position was echoed by his upper house counterpart Konstantin Kosachev earlier in the day.The relations between Moscow and the West soured after Washington, Brussels and their allies accused Russia of fueling tensions in eastern Ukraine and introduced a series of sanctions against Russia as a punitive measure. Moscow denied any involvement in the Ukrainian conflict and introduced countermeasures.
The latest sanctions were proposed by the United States as a retaliation for Russia's alleged meddling in US presidential elections, a claim that Moscow has repeatedly denied.
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