MOSCOW, October 8. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova sharply criticized a joint statement Wednesday made by the German and French foreign ministry chiefs calling for sanctions against the Russian Federation over the Alexey Navalny case.

"The statement of the two ministers, unacceptable by its content and its tone, indicates the absolute unwillingness of Paris and Berlin to face the facts that were repeatedly presented by Russian representatives," the diplomat stressed. "Instead of proper cooperation with the Russian Federation in the interests of clearing up the circumstances of what happened to the blogger, the governments of Germany and France have now switched to threats and attempts to blackmail us. They are urging the European Union to approve new sanctions against Russian individuals and legal entities," she specified.

The diplomat spotlighted the fact that all of the inquiries by the Russian Prosecutor General's Office within the framework of the European Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters have been brushed aside. "We’ve repeatedly stressed to our colleagues the unacceptability of ignoring our numerous inquiries along various lines. There was no reaction," she emphasized. "Apparently, they got completely caught up in the behind-the-scenes intrigues. Russian appeals both through bilateral channels and to the OPCW Technical Secretariat to receive proper explanations have been openly sabotaged," the diplomat added.

She didn’t exclude the possibility that Berlin and Paris will lead a potential "anti-Russian coalition" being formed in the European Union, despite its repeated assurances of a commitment to a partnership with Russia. "For our part, we assure that if our colleagues are ready to reconsider this confrontational course, abandoning attempts to dictate, the possibilities to normalize dialogue are open," the diplomat pledged. "If not, we will draw our conclusions. In any case, "business as usual" with Berlin and Paris is not a possibility as we see it," she concluded.