GORKI, August 4. /TASS/. Russia may expand the list of countries which are subject to its counter sanctions.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev urged the government to study the need to expand the list of such countries.
The government was informed that some countries which were not subject to Russia’s counter sanctions, introduced their retaliatory measures against Russia, Medvedev said.
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"If it is really the case it is necessary to prepare an appeal to the President to supplement the decree /the list of sanctioned countries -TASS/ with an additional number of countries supporting such decisions /Western sanctions against Russia -TASS/," - he said,
Medvedev said that it concerns the countries that previously did not support sanctions against Russia, and therefore were not covered by the Russian response.
"I would ask the Ministry of Agriculture and the government’s administration to clarify this issue and, if necessary, to prepare an appeal of the government to change those acts, which we approved earlier, and proposals how to supplement the decree of the president," - the head of the government said.
Medvedev did not name any specific countries such measures may concern.
In late July, seven European countries - Montenegro, Albania, Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein, Ukraine and Georgia reaffirmed to the EU Council they prolonged the participation in the EU’s sanctions against Crimea and Sevastopol till June 23, 2016.
Six of these countries except Georgia also joined the EU’s decision of July 22 to prolong economic sanctions against Russia till January 31, 2016.
The EU membership aspirants (Montenegro and Albania and the countries affiliated with the European Free Trade Association: Iceland, Norway and Lichtenstein and also Ukraine and Georgia, which are neither EU aspirants or members of EFTA (European Free Trade Association), joined the EU Council’s declaration of June 19 prolonging the operation of the EU’s restrictive measures against Crimea and Sevastopol till June 23, 2016.
On August 7, 2014 Russia imposed a one-year ban on imports of a number of food products from Australia, Canada, the European Union, the United States and Norway as a response to anti-Russia sanctions imposed by those countries.