Washington is using a far-fetched pretext of the so-called Skripal affair for introducing new sanctions against Russia, but Moscow will not abandon protection of its own national interests despite the new restrictions, Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Monday.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th August, 2018) Washington is using a far-fetched pretext of the so-called Skripal affair for introducing new sanctions against Russia, but Moscow will not abandon protection of its own national interests despite the new restrictions, Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Monday.
Earlier in the day, the new US sanctions against Russia over its alleged role in the poisoning of double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia came into forces. The restrictive measures terminated US arms sales to Russia as well as the financing of arms sales, and prohibited exports of national security-sensitive goods and technology.
"[The United States] uses a far-fetched link to the so-called Skripal affair, the investigation of which in the United Kingdom is far from being completed, we are accused of involvement in the Salisbury tragedy, Russia'' elimination of its arsenal of chemical weapons is questioned ... All the accusations voiced are ephemeral, while the restrictions enforced today are quite real, although they repeat the already existing ones in many aspects," Zakharova said in a statement.
The ministry's spokeswoman stressed that the new US sanctions could not "force Russia to abandon the chosen path to firmly defend its national interests."
"We view Washington's decision only as part of a deliberate policy to erode the international structure in the sphere of arms control and non-proliferation, including in the area of banning chemical weapons," the statement read.
Zakharova noted that the sanctions imposed by Washington further complicated possible dialogue with Russia in the existing multilateral and bilateral formats.
