(Moscow) – The Kremlin on Thursday denounced the adoption of US sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin in the event of Ukraine’s aggression “crossing the line”, after presenting a project in this direction.
Posted at 6:38 am
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov denounced that “sanctions against a head of state are a measure that would go too far and would be tantamount to a breakdown in relations.”
He noted that the US Democratic senators’ proposal “does not facilitate a constructive atmosphere for the Russian-Western talks” taking place this week on easing tensions over Ukraine.
Leading Democratic senators on Wednesday unveiled a new sanctions plan aimed at punishing Vladimir Putin and providing financial aid to Kiev in the event of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The law entitled “Defending the Sovereignty of Ukraine” provides for sanctions against the Russian President, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, senior military officials and many entities in the Russian banking sector.
The announcement of the “extremely negative” sanctions plan, according to the Kremlin, came on the eve of a meeting in Vienna of the Permanent Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the third and final sequence of an intense diplomatic ballet. Designed to defuse the danger of conflict in Ukraine.
On Monday, tense discussions in Geneva brought together US and Russian Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Sergey Ryabkov. On Wednesday, NATO and Moscow held talks in Brussels, after concluding observing their deep “differences” over security in Europe.
“We hope, however, that common sense will prevail,” Peskov added, stressing that Russia “has never failed” and “will not lack the political will to continue the dialogue.”
Russia, which has been accused by the Americans and Europeans of plotting an attack on its western ally Ukraine neighbor, responded by saying that the deployment of tens of thousands of Russian troops to the border was a reaction to the growing and hostile presence of the United States. NATO in what Moscow considers its sphere of influence.
Russia has stressed that it does not “intend” to attack Ukraine, but is demanding the signing of a treaty banning any future expansion of NATO, a request the West considers unacceptable.