Russia sees US sanctions as 'counterproductive'

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - Russia believes any new U.S. sanctions will not only harm Moscow and Washington, but also other countries, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

"We consider the continuation of the sanctions rhetoric counterproductive, harmful to the interests of two countries, as well as potentially damaging the interests of other countries," Peskov was quoted as saying by Russia's official TASS news agency.

Peskov's remarks came two days after U.S. House and Senate leaders reached an agreement on legislation that includes new sanctions against Russia, for, they argue, Moscow's meddling in the 2016 American presidential election.

Rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine in 2014 led western powers, including the U.S., to first impose economic and technological sanctions against Moscow.

Peskov said Russia continued to be "extremely negative" about the sanctions, according to TASS.

The European Union, meanwhile, reacted against the U.S. sanctions on Russia as the EU Commission’s chief Jean-Claude Juncker said that the sanctions would harm the interests of European businesses.

According to the daily the Financial Times, Juncker said Brussels “should stand ready to act within days” if the sanctions are adopted without considering EU concerns.

A note prepared for an EU meeting on Wednesday, reported by the Financial Times, warns: “The measures could impact a potentially large number of European companies doing legitimate business under EU measures with Russian entities in the railways, financial, shipping or mining sectors, among others.”

* Ilker Girit contributed to this story from Istanbul.