Russia vows response to any ‘illegal’ US sanctions

Russian officials are threatening to retaliate for sanctions the U.S. is reportedly planning to implement against the country in the coming days. 

The Kremlin on Thursday called any new U.S. sanctions “illegal” and warned they would decrease the likelihood of a meeting between President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

“We condemn any intentions to impose sanctions, consider them illegal, and in any case the principle of reciprocity operates in this area,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to Reuters.

Late Wednesday night, Bloomberg reported that the Biden administration is preparing to sanction around a dozen Russians in connection with the massive Solar Winds hack last year. The U.S. could expel up to 10 more people as well, according to the news outlet. 

The threats of sanctions and retaliation by Russia come as State Department officials are in the process of negotiating and summit between Putin and Biden in the near future. 

During a recent call with Putin, the White House said Biden also expressed his “unwavering” commitment to the Ukraine, a nation seen by the international community as a prime victim of Russian aggression. 

“The President voiced our concerns over the sudden Russian military build-up in occupied Crimea and on Ukraine’s borders, and called on Russia to de-escalate tensions,” the White House said in a statement after the call. “President Biden reaffirmed his goal of building a stable and predictable relationship with Russia consistent with U.S. interests, and proposed a summit meeting in a third country in the coming months to discuss the full range of issues facing the United States and Russia.”

Russia has also been accused by U.S. intelligence officials of meddling in recent U.S. elections. 

On Wednesday, the Kremlin said any meeting between the two world leaders would be contingent on U.S. behavior. 

“While it is too early to talk about the place and time, it still has to be coordinated through diplomatic channels, including further concrete actions,” Peskov said. “Of course, further elaboration of the proposal for a meeting in one of the European countries is possible only taking into account the analysis of the real situation and further steps of our counterparts.”