The United States and allies have prepared a list of people allegedly close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, against whom sanctions may be imposed due to the situation around Ukraine, the Financial Times newspaper writes, citing sources in the United States.
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that the US media publish “a very large amount of unverified, distorted and deliberately false and provocative information” on Ukraine.
According to the newspaper, the United States and allies may impose sanctions against individuals among Russian officials, including high-ranking executives, members of the boards of directors of state companies, as well as their families.
“The individuals we identified belong to or are close to the Kremlin’s inner circle and play a role in government decision-making or are at least involved in the Kremlin’s destabilizing behavior,” a senior US government source said.
He, however, did not name the Russians against whom new restrictions could be imposed, but noted that many could be “particularly vulnerable targets because of their deep financial ties with the West.”
US calls for sanctions against the leadership of Russia, including the head of state, are politically destructive, but not painful, the press secretary of the Russian president said earlier. Peskov noted that representatives of the Russian leadership abroad have not had assets, bank accounts or real estate for a long time, therefore “such a formulation of the issue is absolutely not painful for any of the representatives of the top leadership.”
Russia has repeatedly rejected accusations by the West and Ukraine of “aggressive actions”, stating that it does not threaten anyone and is not going to attack anyone, and statements about “Russian aggression” are used as an excuse to place more NATO military equipment near Russian borders. The Russian Foreign Ministry noted earlier that Western statements about “Russian aggression” and the possibility of helping Kiev defend itself against it are both ridiculous and dangerous.
The press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation stated that Russia is moving troops within its territory and at its own discretion. According to him, it does not threaten anyone and should not worry anyone. As Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier, Russia does not create any pretexts for a conflict situation around Ukraine.