30 July, 2017
Moscow has already responded, ordering a reduction in the number of U.S. diplomats in Russian Federation and closing the U.S. Embassy's recreation retreat.
Russia's Foreign Ministry says Minister Sergei Lavrov has told Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in a phone call that Moscow was forced to respond to the new package of USA sanctions and that it is still willing to improve ties with Washington.
Russia's action Friday mirrored the Obama administration's response to Russia's cyberattack on the Democratic Party and interference in the 2016 presidential election. Its response suggests it has set aside initial hopes of better ties with Washington under Trump, something the USA leader, before he was elected, said he wanted.
The U.S. push to step up sanctions against Russian Federation has drawn an angry response, with Moscow signaling that its patience is being exhausted and its previously restrained behavior is fast reaching an end.
Russia had greeted Trump's election victory with "euphoria", confident it would usher in a new era of close cooperation and an easing of sanctions, said Angela Stent, director of Georgetown University's Center for Eurasian, Russian and Eastern European Studies.
It comes a day after President Vladimir Putin decried what he called "anti-Russian hysteria" in Washington.
The White House has received a bill that would ramp up sanctions against Russian Federation, which President Donald Trump must now sign into law or veto.
As reported, the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to approve tough sanctions on Russia, Iran and North Korea.
Several congressional committees and a federal special counsel are investigating possible collusion between Moscow and Trump's campaign, something both Trump and the Kremlin deny.
Russia also said it would respond in kind if Washington made a decision to expel any Russian diplomats. "It's not good for any president - and most governors don't like to veto things that are going to be overridden".
"I can not imagine anybody is seriously thinking about vetoing this bill", said Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
"We waited so long, we thought it was sufficient time for decision makers in NY to change their minds, it didn't happen", he said, adding that "now we are equals" in terms of diplomatic staff numbers. Putin said at the time that he would wait to see how Trump handled the issue before responding, and Trump praised his restraint.
"I am sure that Europe will think more and more seriously and the Russian-EU relations... will be slowly but surely becoming more constructive", Slutsky said. Friday's exchange over USA diplomats in Russia is "not the last thing the Russians are going to do and it's not the last thing we're going to do".
Lawmakers said they also made adjustments so the sanctions on Russia's energy sector didn't undercut the ability of USA allies in Europe to get access to oil and gas resources outside of Russian Federation.
