Russia’s Foreign Ministry has slammed US plans to slap new sanctions against Moscow, accusing American lawmakers of Russophobia.
In a statement on Friday, the ministry described the proposed sanctions as a “manifestation of Russophobic instincts” that reflect “powerlessness” and urged politicians in Washington, DC to think again whether to go ahead with “senseless” sanctions that “harm its own voters”.
It comes after the House of Representatives approved an amendment to the 2020 draft defense budget, which provides for sanctions on investment in Russia’s sovereign debt over alleged election meddling.
The amendment has yet to become a law, since the defense spending measure must be okayed by both chambers of Congress and signed (or vetoed) by President Donald Trump.
The White House has objected to a number of provisions in the $733 billion defense bill, namely those seeking to restrict Donald Trump’s ability to divert funds from the military to build a border wall and send troops to the Mexico border.
The sanctions were proposed by Democratic lawmakers Brad Sherman and Maxine Waters.
“This amendment provides real, serious sanctions on the Russian state by saying that no US person can make additional purchases of Russian sovereign debt,” Sherman, from California, said during the hearings on Friday.
He added that the amendment envisages a mechanism for the removal of sanctions, if the US administration is convinced that Russia did not interfere with the elections and if Congress agrees with that conclusion.
Source: Sputnik
